


Evolution by Friendship

by bubblygoo



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Mutual Pining, Romance, Unethical Experimentation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 15:54:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23307490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubblygoo/pseuds/bubblygoo
Summary: Green goes to Kalos, makes friends, and writes a thesis.  Red lives on Mt. Silver, battles a kid from Johto, and visits his mom.Eventually, they find themselves and each other.
Relationships: Ookido Green | Blue Oak/Red
Comments: 10
Kudos: 80





	1. Green

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING AND SPOILER
> 
> This story contains depictions of unethical experimentation on Pokemon.

The flight from Pallet Town to Lumiose City took many hours. Green debated taking a plane with his grandpa, who argued that going by plane would be safer for him and Pidgeot. His grandpa believed that Green was always pushing Pidgeot too much. Green, who liked the wind in his hair and the view from Pidgeot’s back, fell silent at that point. He didn’t want to listen to another lecture about how he didn’t care about his Pokemon.  
  
Daisy argued that it should be up to Pidgeot. Pidgeot emerged from his Pokeball then to end the debate. He was going to fly. Green was relieved and surprised. To his shame, he realized that he never asked Pidgeot whether he was willing to fly or not. He had just assumed.  
  
They stopped at a Pokemon Center at the border of Johto, Kanto, and Kalos to rest. There was plenty of room outside the center, which was one of three buildings on the route.  
  
Green’s Pokemon were normally content to rest in their Pokeballs, but they had been cooped for almost two hours and were visibly restless. Executor and Gyarados settled along the river nearby; Rhydon and Arcanine roughhoused in the clearing. Green offered Pidgeot his Pokeball, but Pidgeot only stretched his wings, shading the area with his huge wingspan, and gave Green an offended look.  
  
“Hey, I was the one who said you could do it!” Green argued back, but Pidgeot just tossed his proud head and flew off to rest in the boughs of the trees, which were luckily large enough for him.  
  
That left just Eevee, who did not emerge from her ball without permission, like Green’s other Pokémon did regularly. Green and Eevee were still trying to know how to deal with each other.  
  
Green pressed the button on the ball, signalling that he wanted Eevee to come out.   
  
Eevee emerged and sat still in front of him. She was by far the smallest and lowest leveled Pokemon on Green’s active team. She couldn’t roughhouse or play with the others.  
  
“What am I going to do with you?” Green asked. Eevee sat stock still.  
  
Eevee was Green’s starter. With her help, Green caught Rattata, Pidgey, Nidoran, and Abra. From the beginning, Eevee had a quiet personality, not like Green or the other Pokemon who seemed to be drawn to Green’s loud brashness. Even the Magikarp that Green caught had a loud attitude that only got louder when he evolved.  
  
And then there were Eevee’s evolution requirements. She needed a stone. At the start of Green’s journey, he couldn’t afford one. Rattata, Pidgey, Nidoran, Abra, and Magikarp all evolved quickly. Green had always been fascinated with Pokemon evolution.   
  
As Green’s party was getting full, he began to focus on building a well-rounded team that could address each other's weaknesses with strengths. His starting team had been about numbers more than skill. He needed to send Pokemon back to his grandpa. It was nothing personal; he knew that they would be treated well. He sent Raticate first and then Nidorino. It was only when Green sent back Eevee that his grandpa called to complain.  
  
“I gave you Eevee as your starting partner! Are you sure you want to give her back?” his grandpa said.  
  
“Gramps, don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”  
  
The irony was that, one, Green had not known what he was doing, and two, Green ended up evolving two of his Pokemon with stones anyway. Green now had ample earnings to buy as many evolutionary stones as he wanted. Arcanine and Exeggutor loomed in the distance while tiny Eevee sat in front of him.   
  
“You’re too small to play with the others. You’d get crushed,” Green sighed. “Guess you’ll have to make friends in Kalos, like me.”  
  
Eevee put on a brave face and said nothing.  
  
—-

  
Lumiose City was a huge metropolis, where nobody blinked twice at the huge Pidgeot landing at the Pokemon center. It wasn’t until Green released his all-Kanto team that Green began to get stares, along with his accent, giving him away as a foreigner.   
  
With his team rested, Green set off to find where he would be staying. “Let’s see...”  
  
A red light emerged from his belt. Eevee appeared in front of him, sitting stock still like she always did. She looked somewhat uncomfortable.  
  
“Did the others tell you to come out?” Green asked, vaguely annoyed at the predictable antics of his team. Eevee nodded. “Ridiculous. I can find my way around just fine. But all right, let’s go.”  
  
They began walking on the streets away from the main city center and towards the residential area, according to the map Green got at the Pokemon Center. Eevee, being very quiet and very small, was nearly trampled a few times in the busy streets. By the third time, Green scooped her up and put her on his shoulder. Eevee was very tense when he picked her up.  
  
“Relax, would ya? We’re in Lumiose! City of Love and all that. And great bread,” Green said, veering off when a bakery caught his eye.   
  
A few minutes later, with a bag of fresh bread in hand, he was standing in front of what he believed would be his billet home. He knocked on the door.  
  
Answering the door was a woman with a small child at her legs.   
  
“You must be Green,” she said.  
  
“Yep, that’s me. Grace, right? Thanks for letting me stay with you,” said Green, offering the bag.  
  
“Oh, thank you! I was just about to run out to get some for dinner. And of course - your family’s done so much for me. Serena, say hi to Green,” Grace said to the girl at her knees.  
  
“Hi,” said Serena, waving. She pointed at Eevee. “Hi,” Serena said, waving again.  
  
Green grinned. “Hear that?” he said to Eevee, who nodded solemnly. “Why don’t you say hi?”  
  
Eevee leapt down from his shoulder and sat with perfect posture in front of Serena, who mimicked the pose.  
  
“Why don’t you introduce me to the rest of your team? Your grandpa gave me the impression that they won’t all be like Eevee.”  
  
“An understatement, I’m sure,” Green said wryly. They left Serena and Eevee and went to the backyard, which was spacious for Lumiose City.   
  
“Look at the shine on that Rhydon,” Grace said with admiration when the rest of Green’s team had a chance to get out of their pokeballs.  
  
“Gramps told me that you used to be a Rhyhorn racer.”  
  
“Did he tell you that I was pretty good at it?” Grace asked.  
  
“No, he didn’t mention that,” Green joked, getting a chuckle out of Grace.  
  
“Well, I’ll tell you all about it over dinner. And you can tell me about your carefully planned out semester. Your grandpa and sister told me very clearly that you’re here to be a student and not a Pokemon trainer.”  
  
—-  
  
To Green’s credit, he was sure he could do both.  
  
The program at Kalos University at Lumiose for Pokemon studies was renowned throughout the world. That was Green’s main argument for going, though his main reason was that he did not want to go to Saffron University, where his grandpa was an alumnus. His grandpa strongly disagreed, arguing that Saffron University had a stronger faculty, and, unlike Kalos, none of Saffron’s faculty were rumored to have been funded by the likes of Team Rocket. In the end, Green won out on that, after pointing out that none of those rumors had been proven true and promising to stay away from a handful of professors whom his grandpa specifically said promoted unethical treatment of Pokemon.  
  
Still, Daisy questioned whether placing Green in graduate level courses was the right move. It wasn’t that she didn’t think Green could keep up with the material - she was worried about his social development.  
  
“I don’t want you to grow up too fast,” Daisy said. “You’re just twelve years old. You should enjoy being a kid.”  
  
Green conceded that she had a point when he walked into his first lecture and he was by far the youngest person there. It was a small group, and they blatantly stared.  
  
“Bonjour,” Green said with a two finger salute before taking a seat in the back of the classroom.  
  
He had resigned himself to two more years of loneliness when another person walked in who was around his age. She got even more blatant stares that oscillated between her and Green.  
  
“Um,” she whispered to Green, though in vain since everyone was listening closely. “Is this seat taken?”  
  
“It’s all yours. I’m Green.”  
  
“Valerie,” she said, smiling as she put her stuff down.  
  
Valerie had just settled down when another person arrived.  
  
“What is this, the kid’s club?” someone muttered.  
  
“Uh,” the newcomer said, caught in the stares from being the latest as well as one of the youngest.  
  
Valerie and Green waved and pointed at the empty seat on the opposite side of Green.   
  
“Thanks,” the newcomer said with visible relief. “I’m Grant.”  
  
“I’m Valerie,” Valerie said with a wave.  
  
“Green. Nice to meet you. Welcome to Teenage Puberty 101.”  
  
Valerie and Grant giggled, as did the graduate student sitting directly in front of them.  
  
The harried professor walked in then, late to her first lecture.  
  
“Welcome to the introductory graduate level course on Pokemon evolution,” she said, slightly out of breath. “I’ll go over the syllabus.”  
  
—-  
  
“Rhydon, use Earthquake!” Green called. Rhydon roared and the ground came undone under Mr. Mime, who was knocked out.  
  
“Mr. Mime, come back!” Valerie shouted. “Go, Sylveon!”  
  
“Sylveon?” Green asked. He pulled open his Pokedex.   
  
“Sylveon, the intertwining Pokemon. It sends a soothing aura from its ribbonlike feelers to calm fights,” beeped the Pokedex.  
  
“Sylveon, use Moon Blast!”  
  
And it was over.  
  
“Good match,” said Valerie while they were at the Pokemon Center to make sure none of their Pokemon suffered serious injury.  
  
“Thanks,” said Green. He was getting better at losing, but he still didn’t like it. It helped that he knew that between him, Valerie, and Grant, they all had losses and wins. “When did your Eevee evolve into Sylveon?”  
  
“Yesterday,” Valerie said proudly. “When we were training. I guess we reached another level with each other.”  
  
“Hey Green,” said Grant, who had sat this one out. “What about your Eevee? I noticed you haven’t evolved her yet.”  
  
“I wondered the same,” Valerie confessed. “Is she one of your newer Pokémon?”  
  
“No. She’s... she’s my starter actually,” Green said, avoiding eye contact.  
  
Grant and Valerie glanced at each other. “I heard the trend in Kanto is to evolve Eevee using evolutionary stones. Is that your plan?” asked Valerie.  
  
“I haven’t decided yet,” Green said.  
  
He knew what Valerie was implying. Being from Johto, she was well aware that Eevee could also evolve if the bond between the trainer and Eevee was strong.   
  
At the moment, Eevee was in her pokeball, which felt unusually heavy. Green knew that Eevee wanted to catch up to the rest of Green’s team. He resolved from then on to train her more.

“I can’t wait for doctrinal classes to be over,” Valerie said when they left the Pokemon Center and were on their way back to their billet homes. “Finally, we can focus on research and training.”  
  
“Green, how are you going to complete your thesis? You’re only here for two years, right?” asked Grant. “Valerie and I are here for the gym leader program, so we need to complete a thesis at the end of four years.”  
  
“I dunno,” Green said. He was just here for two years to study before going back to be a Pokemon trainer and battler. That was his deal with his grandpa and sister, at least.  
  
“I heard you talking with Sycamore the other day about a thesis about evolution. You sounded pretty far ahead,” Grant hinted. “Care to share?”  
  
“You’ve seen a draft already,” Green pointed out. “Part of it, at least. It was my paper for the intro to evolution course last semester.”  
  
Grant and Valerie exchanged glances again. They did that often when they thought Green wasn’t looking, a reminder to Green that he was younger than both of them by a year.

“You guys think you’re sly, but you’re not,” Green pointed out. “What?” he demanded.  
  
“Nothing, nothing,” Grant said. “It was a good paper.”  
  
“About friendship being a catalyst for evolution, right? I remember,” Valerie said. “It was like the first half of a full fledged thesis. Where’d you have time for all that? You’re making us look bad here.”  
  
“What can I say? I’m a natural genius,” Green shrugged. He dodged Valerie and Grant’s swipes at him with practiced ease.  
  
They let the topic drop as they arrived at Grace and Serena’s. Grace welcomed all three for dinner; the billet homes took turns feeding the three youngest university students.  
  
“It’s great that you three are such good friends,” Grace said at the dinner table.  
  
“We didn’t have much choice,” said Grant.   
  
“Well, it could have been worse. I can’t imagine growing up without people my age going through the same things as me,” Grace said.  
  
“I was the best battler in my town growing up,” Valerie added in. “I almost became Johto champion when I was eleven.”  
  
“Same for me in Kalos when I was twelve. It was kind of lonely. Most of my friends who set off the same summer as me didn’t make it past the first gym,” Grant said. “When I came home, things weren’t the same. My parents sent me here when... uh, when I started getting bored at school.”  
  
“I guess the only one of us who actually became champion of a region was Green,” Valerie said pointedly at Green.  
  
Green had his mouth full and exaggerated his chewing before swallowing. “I was champion for about an hour. Not sure you could call it being champion at all.”  
  
“Of course you can,” said Valerie. “You had to beat Lance, didn’t you? He’s legendary. So... who beat you?”  
  
Green didn’t answer for a moment. It had been so long since he said his name. “Red. A kid my age. He was my neighbor and we grew up together.”  
  
“In Pallet Town? A little village of champions, I guess,” said Grant. “Red... the name rings a bell, but isn’t Lance the reigning champion in Kanto?”  
  
“Last I heard,” said Valerie.  
  
Green shrugged. “I didn’t stick around long after losing. And then my grandpa shipped me here.”  
  
“You haven’t heard from him?” Valerie asked. “Red, you said his name was? You said you grew up together?”  
  
“We grew apart,” Green said shortly. He didn’t like talking about any of this. Valerie and Grant knew this - Green never bothered to hide when he disliked a topic of conversation - but they had been needling about Green’s past for weeks.  
  
“Valerie, if you beat me right after I made champion, I don’t know if I could speak to you again,” Grant joked.  
  
“Oh, really? I’ll hold you to that,” Valerie jibed back.  
  


—

Being both an interesting foreigner and the son of the most famous Pokemon professor in the world, Green never lacked for battles.  
  
He turned some people down that would have had no chance, but with Eevee needing some catch up, he accepted more challenges than he rejected. Using Eevee brought back memories, which felt silly to say when those memories were from a little over a year and a half ago.  
  
“Are you going to give your other Pokemon a turn? It seems all you do is use Eevee these days,” Grant said, observing Green’s latest match from a hot-headed university student from the side.  
  
“You guys were the ones who kept saying I should use Eevee more. The only ones who are a match for the others are you and Valerie. Maybe Sycamore, if he accepted a battle once in a while,” Green replied. Eevee shook herself off as she returned to Green’s side, looking none worse for the wear.  
  
“And that Red guy?” Grant hinted.  
  
Green didn’t bite. “Who knows.”  
  
Grant huffed. He and Valerie had been increasingly interested in Red since Green had mentioned him the other night.  
  
Green didn’t admit it, but he had been keeping alerts for any news of Red. He had asked Lance and his grandpa for news and received no more than reassurance that Red was fine.  
  
“I can’t believe you’re almost done. Valerie and I still have two years after you’re gone. Dare say it, I think we might even miss you,” Grant teased.  
  
“I know it'll be hard, but try to find meaning in your lives without me,” Green said.   
  
“So, spill. What’s happening with your thesis?”  
  
“It’s not a thesis,” Green insisted for the nth time.  
  
“Yeah, it is. I heard they’re considering you for Professorship, even - that’s how good it is. I bet Sycamore’s on edge with the thought of you as his rival,” Grant said. “I heard even Hemlock mentioned your name.”  
  
“I don’t want to be stuck in a lab all day.”  
  
“You say that, but you sure spend a lot of time there, and you’re good at it,” Grant pointed out. “Gym leader then? You make fun of Valerie and me,” and it was true that Green liked to call them Rock Boy and Fairy Girl on occasion, “But come on - you came here for a reason, didn’t you?”  
  
“Yeah, to get away from my nagging Gramps and Sis,” Green said flippantly. “With you and Valerie, it feels like I never left.”  
  
“Hey, which one am I?”  
  
—

  
Later that night, Green called Eevee from her ball. She sat still in front of him as always. Green came to learn that this was her preferred position.   
  
“You remember Red, don’t you?” Green asked.  
  
Eevee softly voiced the affirmative.  
  
“You haven’t seen him in a while. Well, neither have I, I guess... but you didn’t see him that day. When he beat me for the last time. I thought I would have gotten him that time. I trained so hard and pushed everyone to the brink. I shuffled everyone around to find the perfect type combination. In the end, I still lost, and Gramps told me off for it all.  
  
“I went back to Pallet Town after that. I was so embarrassed. I was going to be the youngest champion, but Red, who was born two weeks after me, took that title, too. I wanted so bad to be the best. I wanted to prove to everyone...”  
  
Green trailed off. He wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to say.   
  
“That I was fine and that it didn’t matter that Mom and Dad were gone,” Green said at last, throat tight. “It happened the year before, and so quickly. Everyone kept asking how I was, and the same to Sis and Gramps. People were worried that I was going to be a handful and too much for Gramps. I had trouble making friends as a kid. The only person who would play with me was, well, Red. I couldn’t wait for the summer so I could get out of there and show everyone that I could take care of myself...  
  
“Well, anyway... after Red beat me, I went back to Pallet Town. Sis didn’t say anything, she just let me in. But I was in my room for what felt like ten minutes when Sis knocked at the door. She said Red was there. I said that he could go screw himself.  
  
“Next thing I know, that jerk is on his Charizard in front of my window. His Charizard looked like it was about to smash my window in, so I opened it.  
  
“Red didn’t say anything. He just stared. I got so annoyed, I started yelling at him. I can’t remember exactly what I said... I might have blamed him for ruining my life... Well, he didn’t say anything. He just sat on top of his Charizard the whole time and listened to me yell. The neighborhood was staring at us, too.  
  
“Eventually, I couldn’t yell at him anymore, so I told him to go away, and he did. And that was the last I saw him. Two weeks later, we went to Kalos.”  
  
Eevee sat perfectly still, her eyes steady on Green.   
  
“I don’t know what happened to him,” Green said. “Lance told me that the League gave him a leave of absence because ‘he earned it.’ But they’ll still come calling me when they need a favor,” Green shook his head.  
  
Green held a hand out to Eevee, who came forward and allowed him to ruffle her ears.  
  
“But you know all about that. I’m glad you came with us. After this is over, we'll get you to evolve and show Valerie and her Sylveon what’s what.”  
  
Eevee gave a sudden vigorous nod, which Green smiled at. Eevee had things in common with him after all.

“We’ll get through this,” Green promised.   
  
—-  
  
Grant and Green lounged on the university lawn before Valerie took a break from lab to meet them for dinner. Sycamore joined them as well, gracing their group with his older presence and generous wallet.  
  
Sycamore was young for a graduate student, and he was on track to become the youngest professor to run his own lab, though apparently he was going to relocate to a smaller town to do it. Green liked Sycamore enough: they exchanged ideas about Pokemon evolution, and Sycamore took the age difference between them in stride.  
  
“Why do I hang out with you guys when I know you just want me to pay?” Sycamore griped at the end of the meal as always before taking out his wallet.  
  
“Because we’re your only friends,” replied Grant easily.   
  
“Not true,” Sycamore replied.  
  
“Hey Sycamore, I heard the Hemlock Lab is getting a huge shipment of supplements for a new research project. Know anything about it?” asked Green.  
  
“And then there’s the shameless fishing for information!” Sycamore exclaimed. “The answer is no, I don’t know anything about it officially. But let’s just say that anything involving the Hemlock Lab is probably true in a bad way.”  
  
Hemlock was one of the most notorious professors for overworking his grad students and having dubious financiers for research. But he was also brilliant and excellent at securing funding for the university, so positions at his lab were still highly coveted.  
  
“He offered me a position to join his lab,” Green said. Grant and Valerie looked at him in surprise. He hadn’t mentioned it to them. “He noticed my Eevee was at a high level and hasn’t evolved yet. He said he read drafts of my thesis and thought I’d be interested in his research.”  
  
“And you said no,” Grant said. “Right?”  
  
“Hemlock is such a creep,” Valerie added. “I don’t know why the University keeps him around. I wouldn’t let him near my worst enemy, let alone my Pokemon.”  
  
“I’m most morally corrupt of the three of us,” Green said to Sycamore. “I said I’d think about it.”  
  
“Green,” Grant said, judgment apparent in his voice.   
  
“I thought you didn’t want to be a professor,” Valerie said in the same tone.  
  
“And if you changed your mind, I wouldn’t recommend Hemlock,” Sycamore added.  
  
—-  
  
Hemlock had been courting Green for months ever since Hemlock had seen Eevee battle one day. He approached Green, who was alone for once, and immediately struck up a conversation.  
  
Hemlock was a tall, well-built man with greying hair and baritone voice. He exuded charisma and spoke well, which why many people were drawn to him at first glance.   
  
“Eevee is a fascinating Pokemon. So many possibilities,” Hemlock said to Green. “Yours is one of finest specimens I’ve seen. It’s rare to see an Eevee this... mature.”  
  
“We’ve been through a lot,” Green said.  
  
“You’re choosing not to evolve it?” Hemlock asked.  
  
“We haven’t decided,” Green said.  
  
Hemlock would find Green when he was alone while Valerie and Grant were busy elsewhere. He would become bolder as time went on.  
  
“You’re interested in one of these affection-catalyzed evolutions, I assume? Otherwise, you would have used a stone and been done with it. Affection, or friendship as some call it, is really so interesting. It’s the subject of my research. I thought you might be interested, having read your paper...  
  
“You know, some Pokemon and their trainers just never reach that level of ‘friendship’ needed for evolution. I think that’s all wrong, don’t you? There must be some way to make it go. The concept of friendship between Pokemon and trainer - that’s a nice idea, but it’s not very scientific, is it?  
  
“What if there was a way to make it go? Wouldn’t that be great for people like you and your Eevee?”  
  
—-  
  
Hemlock’s lab, as it appeared to the public, was open glass and viewable from outside the building. Visitors to the university could see Hemlock himself in his lab coat with his grad students during the day.  
  
He had given Green multiple tours and heavily hinted that there was more than was above ground. That was obvious enough. But Green didn’t know exactly what.  
  
“Professor Hemlock,” Green called into the lab. Hemlock was easy to spot with his tall frame.  
  
“Green!” Hemlock said happily. “What can I do for you?”  
  
“I’ve heard you’re starting a new project on supplements,” Green said. “It interested me.”  
  
“Now, don’t be coy with me, Green. I’ve heard you’re still undecided on whether you’re even staying in Kalos after graduation,” Hemlock chided.  
  
“I am,” Green admitted. “Gramps has been nagging me to go home. But I think Kalos has some evolutionary ideas that are way ahead of Kanto.”  
  
“Walk with me,” said Hemlock. They walked the length of the lab floor to Hemlock’s office. Hemlock shut the door after them. “Now, evolutionary stones are old news for you Kanto folks.”  
  
“Evolution on demand. It’s one of my favorite ways of getting my Pokemon to evolve, but it has its limits. Eevee’s stone evolutions pale in comparison to the friendship pathways, but those are, well. You’ve seen my Eevee,” Green sighed with annoyance. “What I’m really interested in is the concept of an evolutionary stone applied to other pathways of evolution. Supplements already exist for increasing a Pokemon’s level. Why stop there? Imagine you could evolve a Pokemon with a supplement instead of needing to trade it or having to increase its so-called friendship with you.”  
  
“Now, Green. If you say any more, I’m going to start thinking you’ve been reading my grant applications,” Hemlock said.  
  
“Maybe I have,” Green replied. “Friendship-catalyzed evolutions are a special interest of mine. But they are so inconvenient.”  
  
“Indeed,” said Hemlock. “Your grandfather’s a fierce critic of the use of supplements.”  
  
“There’s a reason I’m here and not at Saffron U. Let’s just say Gramps and I don’t always see eye to eye.”  
  
Green let the conversation lapse while Hemlock probed him with intense eyes in silence.   
  
“You’re an interesting one, Green. A brilliant mind with a practical interest in results. If only more people were like you, the progress we could have made... What are your hours like?”  
  
—  
  
Grant and Valerie made their dislike of Hemlock clear and their dislike of Green working with him even clearer.   
  
Green was too busy to notice. Hemlock had him working around the clock, running experiments in the lab and taking field notes around the clock on friendship evolutions. Grant and Valerie gradually saw less and less of Green as the fall semester came to an end.  
  
Other things fell by the wayside, too. Letters to home became infrequent, prompting Green’s sister and grandpa to call him for updates. Like Valerie and Grant, his grandpa was vocal about his dislike of Hemlock and his disappointment that Green broke his promise to his grandpa to stay away from the likes of Hemlock.  
  
It didn’t mean anything to Green. His days were filled with research and not much else. It got to the point where he lent his Pokémon to Valerie and Grant so his team could exercise once in a while. His team didn’t like that either.  
  
—  
  
“Pokemon evolution’s connection to the friendship between the Pokemon and a human trainer has been difficult to quantify or predict compared to other evolutionary pathways. Our study tracked the behavior of three species (Eevee, Chansey, and Azurill) that evolve by friendship. We discuss three key behavioral changes that occur between capture and evolution that were common between the three species...”  
  
Green yawned. It was late, and he felt like he was making little progress in revising the draft of the paper that he still didn’t think of as a thesis.  
  
“What do you think? Too boring?”  
  
Eevee, who seemed unusually nocturnal for her species, did not react. She seemed to like watching him suffer through the night.  
  
“Man, I gotta go in tomorrow morning, too,” Green groused. “I don’t have a lot of time left.”  
  
Eevee flicked her tail at him when he yawned again.  
  
“Wake me up tomorrow, would you? Around seven.”  
  
—-  
  
“Green!”  
  
Hemlock’s booming voice reached Green in the corner of the lab in seconds.  
  
“Excellent work on your study on the Luxury Ball. We just got news that Evolution Magazine is publishing it in March. You’re the first name author.”  
  
“Great,” said Green, ignoring the envious stares from the other grad students.  
  
“You’re coming to the dinner tonight to celebrate, of course. But that’s not what I wanted to ask you about. Walk with me.”  
  
“You know,” Hemlock said after closing the door to his office. “You’ve got something special that I haven't seen in a long time. The last grad student I knew who walked into a lab and got first author one year later was... me!” Hemlock grinned. “So I’ve got a good bet that you’re hungry for more.”  
  
“Of course,” Green said, pushing himself to sound as though he had been sleeping enough lately. “That’s why I joined your lab.”  
  
“I knew it. Well, Green, I’ve got another project for you. You remember that I was working on a project on supplements?”  
  
“Right,” Green said. His heart rate picked up slightly.  
  
“Well, I could use a hand on that. In fact, I’ve got a special project for you.”  
  
“I’m all yours,” Green replied.  
  
—-  
  
Hemlock’s lab was considerably different at night. The glass walls made Green feel like an animal on display. Hemlock led him to the elevator, which they rode to the basement. Then they went to a locked door, behind which was another elevator that they took one floor down.  
  
“How’s your Eevee?” Hemlock asked.  
  
“Fine. Still an Eevee,” Green replied.  
  
The doors opened to a short hallway leading to another set of doors.  
  
Hemlock opened it.  
  
It looked like a surgery room. There was an examination table and an IV hooked to a bag of yellow fluid. On the table was a Marill.  
  
“Here’s your project,” said Hemlock.  
  
He put his arm around Green’s shoulder as they watched the Marill on the examination table. Seconds passed. Then Marill began to stir and contort. Within moments, the Marill became Azurill.  
  
“Wait for it,” Hemlock said.   
  
The fluid in the IV bag began to drain. It was hooked to Azurill, who was silently shaking as it became Marill. Some minutes later, Marill became Azurill.  
  
“Enough already,” Green burst out, unable to watch any longer. “I get it.”  
  
“You see my problem?” said Hemlock, gesturing to Azurill with his free hand. “We just can’t get the formula right. We got it to go, but it won’t stick. Like a one night stand,” Hemlock laughed. “Here’s where you come in. I need you to work your magic. What you did with the Luxury Ball, that was gold. Literally. I need that but for permanent evolution by friendship. Think about what we could do with this, Green. Friendship and loyalty from Pokemon in a bottle.”  
  
Green said nothing, worried that he would vomit if he opened his mouth.  
  
“I take your silence as an excited yes. Now, there’s one more thing...”  
  
Green reacted too late, only getting his hand cut by a vine when he reached to protect Eevee’s Pokeball. He watched as Hemlock’s Victreebell, which had been waiting in the hallway, dropped Eevee’s ball in his free hand.  
  
“There’s an unfortunate side effect of repeated use of the formula that necessitates a regular source of specimens. I think your Eevee would be perfect if this one doesn’t last.”  
  
—-  
  
The next few weeks were hard. Green didn’t have his team with him. Eevee was gone. And Azurill was barely hanging on.  
  
The formula was a mix of supplements and derivatives of illegal substances that raised Pokemon endorphins temporarily. The formula worked by trying to generate the same signals that could be measured when a Pokemon evolved with friendship. Hemlock’s team had been studying for months with seemingly no progress in make the artificially-induced evolution permanent. Their mysterious benefactor was getting impatient.  
  
Hemlock waited a week before visiting Green while he was with Azurill to let Eevee out of her ball. It was, unsurprisingly, when Hemlock was unhappy with how slowly Green was working.  
  
Eevee kept a brave face on the whole time. Green had never felt so angry.  
  
“Hey, Green,” said Valerie one day. “We’re getting worried about you.”  
  
Grant was with her, too. “You haven’t been yourself lately. Where’s Eevee?”  
  
Green snapped at them. It wasn’t his best moment, and he would apologize to them later. But he had no time.  
  
Green had memorized the formula. He memorized how to synthesize it and how to administer it. He had maybe another week.  
  
The network of people assisting Hemlock on this was vast, yet it was clear that the University had no idea this was happening. By all appearances, Hemlock’s lab was above board. Even most of his grad students who worked around the clock for him had no idea.  
  
But a shockingly high number not only knew but helped cover for Hemlock. It soon became clear to Green that Hemlock was operating this way because he had hostages.  
  
“Green,” Hemlock said at the end of two weeks. “I’ve been patient with you, wouldn’t you agree? Now, it’s time to see some results. The specimen’s last evolution lasted thirty minutes longer than the last. That’s not acceptable. I expect to see real progress by tomorrow.”  
  
—-  
  
There was another set of doors that Green had not been allowed to open. He had a feeling he knew what was inside, but he couldn’t think about that yet.  
  
In front of him was Azurill. They had little time left.  
  
They waited for Hemlock to enter. His Victreebel was behind him, vines extended. Green made eye contact with Azurill before administering the formula. Azurill changed to Marill.  
  
“Starting the timer now,” Green said.   
  
Thirty minutes passed. Then an hour.  
  
“Good,” said Hemlock. He didn’t move for the entire time.  
  
Green waited. They had about fifteen minutes.  
  
“You know, there’s not much to do when I’m waiting down here,” Green said.  
  
“Bring a book,” Hemlock suggested.  
  
“I had a better idea. Marill, use Ice Beam!”  
  
Marill aimed his attack at Victreebel, who was caught off guard. Both Victreebel and Hemlock though Hemlock would be the target.  
  
“Finish him!”  
  
Victreebel extended his vines, but it was too late; Marill knocked him out.

“That was a big mistake,” Hemlock warned, but his expression changed for the worse when Marill began to glow with the light of natural evolution.  
  
Marill evolved into Azumarill.  
  
“What is this?” Hemlock demanded.   
  
“I told you. We had a lot of time,” said Green. “Azumarill, use Water Gun!”  
  
Azumarill sprayed a jet of water at Hemlock’s waist, loosening Eevee’s Pokeball. Green leapt forward and managed to snag it, fumbling a bit when Hemlock seized Green’s throat with a single hand. Hemlock reached for Eevee’s Pokeball, but Green managed to press the button to override the manual lock Hemlock placed on it and released her.  
  
Eevee leapt for Hemlock but was knocked back when Hemlock released his Houndoom.  
  
“Houndoom, use Foul Play,” Hemlock said, wiping the blood from his chin where Eevee had managed to bite him.  
  
“Eevee, dodge,” Green gasped, still in Hemlock’s grip.  
  
Eevee moved quickly, but Houndoom still grazed her, sending her flying against a wall.  
  
Aiming for Hemlock this time, Azumarill used Ice Beam. Hemlock shouted in pain and loosened his grip on Green, who was sucked in gasps of air. Head still swimming, Green ran for the door. Eevee threw herself in Houndoom’s way, allowing Green to escape and run to the hallway and pull the fire alarm. Sirens blared, and graduate students implicit in the scheme came out of the other set of doors.  
  
“Green, Green, Green,” Hemlock said, coming out of the other room. Houndoom held Eevee unconscious in its jaws and dropped her on the floor. Hemlock held Azumarill, who was also unconscious. “I was just going to ruin your career and leave it at that. But now I have to kill you.”  
  
The grad students were silent but visibly confused and disturbed at the sight of Green, whose neck likely showed marks.   
  
“Too late,” Green said hoarsely.  
  
“A terrible accident happened. Your own Eevee viciously attacked you after you forced it to take illegal supplements. I tried to save you, but your Eevee evolved into Umbreon because of the supplements and tore your throat out. I pulled the fire alarm to alert the authorities, but by the time they arrived, you were dead.”  
  
Hemlock shook his head sadly. “You had so much potential. Houndoom—“  
  
The elevator dinged before Hemlock could finish his command. The door opened to reveal Lance, the Champion of the Kanto League, and an Espeon, who felt familiar.  
  
Lance took the scene in for a second and then released one of his Dragonair, who leapt into battle with Houndoom and knocked it out quickly.  
  
Hemlock wasn’t done. He shoved past the grad students, who were still dazed.  
  
“Safety exit,” Green said. “Around the back.”  
  
“Get up to ground level,” Lance said. “I’ll take it from here.”  
  
Green didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed Eevee and rode the elevator up. On the way, he administered a Full Revive. Eevee stirred in his arms before becoming fully alert.  
  
“We’ve got to stop him,” Green said.   
  
Eevee leapt to the ground and ran. Green followed her to the safety exit’s connection to the ground floor stairway.   
  
“Azumarill, use Ice Beam!”  
  
Eevee barely dodged, and so did Green. The wall behind him was covered in icicles.  
  
Hemlock tossed a syringe to the floor. Another side effect of the formula was induced loyalty.  
  
Azumarill prepared to use Ice Beam again. This time, Eevee used Quick Attack and knocked him off balance, though part of her collar froze as Eevee leapt away from the blast. The blast broke the window, letting the moonlight shine in.  
  
Eevee started to glow. Green didn’t waste time waiting for his Pokedex to register his new Pokemon.  
  
“Umbreon, use Faint Attack!”  
  
Umbreon leapt forward, knocking out Azumarill for the second time that night. 

Hemlock didn’t waste any time in drawing another Pokeball, but he was stopped against his will by psychic force. Red’s Espeon had come up behind Hemlock and kept him still while Green patted down Hemlock’s pockets. Green pulled out a vial containing what Green knew to be the formula. He dropped the vial on the ground and smashed it under his foot for good measure.

Then Green dug out Hemlock’s keys from another pocket, along with Hemlock’s phone. “Let him talk,” Green said to Espeon, looking Hemlock in the eye. 

“We could have revolutionized the world, Green,” Hemlock said after Espeon allowed him to speak. “Evolution on demand, friendship modulated by dosage. And you gave it up.”

As if to make a point, Umbreon came over to Green’s side.

“Evolution doesn’t work like that,” Green said. “It never will. The Pokemon should always choose.”

“What a small mind. I should have known you’d be a disappointment,” Hemlock said.

Lance came running up the safety exit with Dragonair. Green tossed Hemlock's keys and cell phone to Lance, who caught them as he skidded to a stop.

“I know more about evolution than you ever will, Hemlock. And more about friendship, too. And coming from me? That’s pretty sad.”

—  
  
“So is that Azumarill yours now?” asked Lance after the rest of the team that the League sent had come in.  
  
They were outside under the full moon. Azumarill had recovered and was resting on the ground beside Umbreon, who had stayed by his side until he had woken up and not moved since.   
  
“I think his trainer might still be around,” Green said. He glanced around him. The League had secured the building and taken the grad students found in the lab into custody. There were lots of tearful breakdowns and pleas for missing Pokemon, including several Azurills. Green couldn’t be sure who Azumarill’s trainer was.  
  
The Espeon that Green had seen earlier appeared as though out of nowhere. He went to Lance’s side.  
  
“Espeon here is on loan,” Lance explained. “From a mutual friend.”  
  
“Red?” Green said immediately. It was an embarrassing reaction that he’d regret later. “You’ve seen him?”  
  
“Just once recently. I came to ask him for a favor, but he was busy. I mentioned that I had asked you to do this assignment for me, and he asked me to take Espeon. I think Red wanted to come himself, but things don’t always work out.”  
  
Green scoffed. “Sure he did.”  
  
“I’ll tell him you said hi. Right after I explain to your grandpa why the League is all over your university and that you’ll need to be here a bit past graduation.”  
  
Green had synthesized an antidote to the formula to address some of its side effects, like muscle trauma, depression, and addiction. Of Hemlock’s grad students, he was not the only who tried, but he was the only one who had succeeded.  
  
The sun was starting to come up. The entire university was on lockdown while the lab was being emptied and the Pokemon were evaluated.  
  
“You kids can’t be here.”  
  
“The hell we can’t! That’s our friend,” said Grant.  
  
Green turned around. It was Grant and Valerie, arguing with one of the League guards. Green waved them over.  
  
“It’s okay,” said Lance to the guard.   
  
Valerie and Grant had equal expressions of surprise and awe when they realized who Green was with. Lance shook hands with each of them, ignoring their obvious admiration.  
  
“Hey, remember me?” Green asked.  
  
“Oh, yeah,” said Grant. “Here,” he shoved three pokeballs at Green, not taking his eyes off of Lance. Valerie at least looked a bit apologetic.  
  
Green didn’t care, so long as he had his team back. He couldn’t risk all of them; it was bad enough that he had to take a gamble with Eevee.  
  
“So, Green was on some sort of secret mission?” Grant asked Lance.  
  
“I can neither confirm nor deny,” Lance winked. “But it was lucky that he happened to be studying here and still takes my calls.”  
  
“Green, is that Umbreon who I think she is?” asked Valerie, noticing Umbreon at last, who had stayed quietly by Azumarill. Her Sylveon emerged to say hello to her evolutionary cousin, as well as Azumarill.  
  
“Eevee evolved,” Green said. “In the nick of time.”  
  
“Next level, right?” Valerie said. “And the Azumarill?”  
  
Valerie approached Azumarill slowly, who watched her gamely and allowed her to come close.  
  
Green pondered. Valerie did like fairy types. “Got room on your team for him? He’s got a mean Ice Beam.”  
  
——  
  
_ Gramps, Sis, _ _  
_ _  
_ _ This is a mailed copy of my paper published in Evolution Magazine this month. I figured you’d want a hard copy to frame and treasure forever. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I thanked both of you on the last page. That’s the page everyone reads, so be grateful. _   
  
——  
  
_ Excerpt from Human Kindness as an Alternative Pathway for Pokemon Protective Behavior Evolution. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Friendship is an approximation of the attachment between trainer and Pokémon[1], yet many Pokemon that evolve by friendship are often found in the wild - Pikachu (evolved from Pichu)[2]; Clefairy (evolved from Cleffa)[3]; and Marill (evolved from Azurill)[4]. These species are often found in the wild in large colonies with their pre-evolved forms, who often stay in the same colony after evolving[5]. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Other Pokemon who evolve by friendship are never found in the wild: Umbreon and Espeon are archetypal examples for which the first documented evolutions were recorded as recently as this decade[6]. Along with Blissey[7], no reliable documentation of these species being found in the wild exists[8]. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ This paper concludes that Pokemon who evolved from friendship and cannot be found in the wild evolve not from an evolutionary need to survive, but a need to protect a trainer whom the Pokemon has come to trust and care for. Whereas evolution is traditionally thought of as a self-protection mechanism, evolution by friendship demonstrates that Pokemon can be at their most powerful when protecting others. _ _  
_  
—-  
  
Green spent his last week in Kalos avoiding the University at all costs. Valerie and Grant were happy to help, keeping him busy with battles and expeditions out of the city.  
  
Eventually, Green had to come back to campus to say goodbye to the Pokemon rescued from Hemlock’s lab, now under the care of the University and supervision of the League. Hemlock’s lab was being demolished to be rebuilt into a care facility. In the meantime, the University set up bungalows and fenced off a large enclosure. Lance was waiting for Green there, along with Red’s Espeon. Waiting with him was Agatha.  
  
“Bonjour, old hag,” Green greeted with a two-finger salute. “Long time no see.”  
  
“I see you still have your grandfather’s natural charm,” Agatha replied.   
  
“I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all week,” Lance reprimanded. “I want another shot at convincing you about our offer.”  
  
Red’s Espeon came to him, nudging Umbreon’s Pokeball until Umbreon came out to play. They went off together, leaping over the fence to join the Pokemon in the enclosure. Green leaned over the fence, and a curious Igglybuff came over to take a closer look.  
  
“I’ve been busy. I just published a paper, you know,” Green reminded him. Green rubbed the Igglybuff behind her ears. “And tomorrow, I officially graduate high school. There’s a lot of paperwork involved, apparently.”  
  
Agatha and Lance shared a knowing look.  
  
“We read your paper,” Agatha said. “Very impressive. You must not have slept much in the last two years. The last person to complete a doctorate at your age was your grandfather. He decided to dedicate his life to the study of Pokemon and gave up his equally storied career as a battler and trainer. 

“Well, I’m not just here to reminisce. Unlike your grandfather, I am a battler. You, along with Red, were the first person to defeat me along with the rest of the Elite Four in quite some time. Such talent shouldn’t be wasted.  
  
“We need someone strong, reliable, and with a good heart to reopen and lead the Viridian Gym back to its former stature. Lance told me your concerns about limiting yourself to a single type. As you know, Gym Leaders are responsible for teaching young trainers how to battle and for furthering knowledge and understanding of Pokemon through research. Type specialization happens to be conducive to both. But it is not strictly necessary. We have reconsidered and now are offering you the position of Viridian City Gym Leader without type restriction. But you must submit a proposal describing how you will teach young trainers how to battle and further the study of Pokemon, without type restriction.”  
  
Agatha waited. The Igglybuff had long been sitting down, eyes drooping closed as Green continued to scratch her behind the ears. In the distance, Umbreon and Espeon were roughhousing.  
  
“How’s this for a proposal,” Green said at last. “You said read my paper? By the time trainers get to me, they better be prepared to battle Pokemon at their very best. That means Pokemon at their fully evolved forms. I’ll dedicate my research to that, too.”

“So, a gym dedicated to Pokemon evolution?” Agatha asked. “Interesting. But Kanto is not known for our diversity in evolution pathways, so such a specialization would likely require significant travel for your research.”  
  
“Oui,” said Green. “Take it or leave it.” Seeing Lance’s consternation, Green added, “Oh, relax. It’s not like I’d be gone for months where nobody can reach me, like Red.” He had to slip in a little dig there; the double standard was irking him. “I don’t want Team Rocket or anyone like them in Viridian City anymore than you do,” he said, watching as the Igglybuff left to rejoin her small colony in the middle of the enclosure. “And it’d be nice to be on your payroll if you’re going to keep asking me to do stuff for you anyway.”  
  
Agatha grinned. She knew she had won. “Well, then. It looks like we’re in agreement. We’ll allow you to travel occasionally. But the moment we get complaints from trainers that the gym is closed, we’ll be on your tail.”  
  
“The second moment,” Green argued.  
  
“Deal,” said Agatha quickly, making Green feel foolish. “So when can you start?”  
  
—-  
  
The flight from Lumiose to Pallet Town took two days because of several stops. Green wanted to stop by the Pokemon Day Care Center in Johto to hand-deliver a copy of his paper and thank them for their help in conducting the field research; and the Team wanted to stop by the base of Mt. Silver for some reason.  
  
With the Pokemon Center being the only structure within hours of travel by foot, the mountain area was serene and majestic in its raw wildness. Green supposed some would like that, though his preference was for the city. Green allowed his team to rest at the Pokemon Center and roam in the nearby tall grass, but he drew the line at venturing up the mountain.  
  
“We’re not going up there,” Green said sternly to his team, who seemed oddly antsy. Even Umbreon was nosing around the path from the Pokemon Center into the caves. Green had a feeling that the Pokemon in the caves would prove a challenge even for his team, and, as tempting as challenges were, they didn’t have time for that.  
  
It took effort to convince everyone to get back in their Pokeballs. Luckily Pidgeot was on Green’s side, since he didn’t like caves of any sort.  
  
Still, Green couldn’t help a look over his shoulder at Mt. Silver as they continued to Pallet Town. He had an odd feeling about the place but shook it off as he could see Pallet Town in the distance.  
  
—-  
  
The front of the house looked almost the same, but instead of a Clefairy greeting Green at the short front gate, there was a Clefable, evolved with the moon stone that had Green had mailed back home to Daisy. Clefable signalled Green’s return with a short call to Daisy.  
  
“Hey, Sis,” Green said, waving.  
  
“Green! You’re just in time for dinner with Grandpa,” Daisy said, ushering Green in.  
  
The inside looked similar but with a few more medals and trophies that Daisy had collected as a Coordinator and some knick knacks Green had sent from Kalos.   
  
“Green, welcome home,” his grandpa said, sitting at his usual spot at the table. “I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it to you in person: excellent work on your paper.”  
  
“Thanks, Gramps,” Green said appreciatively. “I’ll let everyone out to stretch a bit. Be right back.”  
  
The back yard wasn’t as spacious as his grandpa’s lab, but it was still home to his Kanto team. Pidgeot was already there, dozing off, having flown Green back from Kalos. Machamp, Executor, Arcanine, and Rhyperior didn’t wait for Green to take their balls out before emerging into the yard. Umbreon was courteous enough to wait.  
  
“So, Agatha tells me that you’ve accepted their offer,” his grandpa said when Green came back inside. “What finally convinced you?”  
  
“The money, of course,” Green joked. 

“Of course. Well, I haven’t the faintest idea how, but the news that you will not be joining academia has already spread, and I’ve received many calls and emails from labs offering you the sun and moon. I told them that you’d probably decline,” his grandpa said.  
  
“I probably would,” Green said.

“I think being a gym leader would be perfect for you,” Daisy said. “And, not to change the topic, but I couldn’t help but notice how happy all of your Pokemon are, especially Umbreon.”  
  
“What, was she miserable before?” Green asked irritably. He knew the answer. It was still something he was ashamed of.  
  
“I didn’t say that, I think you did,” Daisy replied. “And just for that, I’ll also say how happy you look these days.”  
  
“Whatever,” Green said.  
  
“Now, now,” their grandfather interrupted. “I see you still have some maturing to do, Green. But when I think of what I was like when I was your age... well, I’m very proud of you both.”  
  
“Gramps, if you say anything more, I’m going to throw up,” Green warned.  
  
That night, Green took his team to the Viridian Gym. No one was allowed in yet; the League wanted to remodel and clean up, and they had locked it up in the meantime. But they gave Green the key on his insistence.  
  
Inside, the gym was empty with a layer of dust covering everything, including the fact that this gym had been used as a hideout for the most complex and successful criminal enterprise to abuse and exploit Pokemon in history. Green didn’t want that to be the legacy of any place, let alone one so close to home.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” Green said to his team, who all answered in agreement.  
  
—-  
  


_ Excerpt from Human Kindness as an Alternative Pathway for Pokemon Protective Behavior Evolution. _ _  
_

_[73] The focus of this paper has been on the strength that Pokemon draw from their bonds with others, but the same concept applies to humans. If humans could recognize that we, too, become our strongest when we share kindness and love, the world would be a better place. _

  
  



	2. Red

At first glance, the boy reminded Red of Green: brash, loud, headstrong. He said his name was Gold, from Newbark Town and asked for Red’s name. Red didn’t answer, partly still taken by the resemblance.

Maybe it was wishful thinking. The image of Green faded when Gold called out his Typhlosion. Pikachu leapt out first, eager for the challenge.

It didn’t last long. By the end, Red had a feeling for who Gold was: a good trainer, likely a standout for his age group, but, unlike Green and Red, blessed with some normalcy. Gold’s Quagsire was the last to lose, taken down by Espeon.

“Man,” Gold said, sounding slightly dazed. “Hey, who are you? Are you from Kanto?”

A chill gust of screaming wind cut off further conversation. The climate of Mt. Silver was unsuitable for most people, and Gold was dressed in light layers, completely unprepared. He fell forward into the snow.

Red motioned for Charizard to come over, who flew them down to the Pokemon Center at the base of the mountain. The stationed nurse came and asked no questions, used to Red bringing down passed out trainers.

Red stopped by the computer, which stood out from the rest of Pokemon Center as ancient technology. It even had an “out of order” sign on it.

“Sir, would you like to heal your Pokemon?” Nurse Joy asked.

Red declined as always. Charizard was waiting for him outside, looking none worse for the wear. It had been a long time since any of his Pokemon were in their Pokeballs, let alone a Pokemon center.

The others were waiting for them when they got back. Pikachu, who had fainted, had recovered using the hot spring, his fur still damp from its healing waters. It was his team’s first battle against another trainer in a long time and seemed to awaken something in them.

Red didn’t think Gold would be back. At least, not later that same week.

“Hey! Your name’s Red, isn’t it?” Gold asked cheerfully. The more Red saw of him, the less he saw Green. “You’re from Pallet Town!”

Without waiting for an answer, Gold let out his Tyranitar. Red could see the same fierce joy of battle reflected that Gold had reflected in his Pokemon. Red answered in kind with Venusaur, who came lumbering forward slowly before releasing a lightning-quick vine whip.

Gold was good. Even more, he was getting better, already markedly improved in the week since Red had seen him last. The second bout was longer and more interesting, but the result was the same.

“Aw man,” Gold said. He fainted again.

The third time he was back, he had a scarf.

“Red from Pallet Town!” Gold declared. “Former Pokemon League Champion, and undefeated in your reign: I challenge you!”

Red wondered where Gold was getting his information. Perhaps Oak had told him; Gold had a Pokedex, which Oak distributed to only a select few.

Gold called out Tangrowth as his first Pokemon, and Pikachu went up first.

“Tangrowth, use Trick Room!”

That was new. Pikachu’s speed, his main advantage, was now a weakness. Pikachu ended up losing the rematch, but Trick Room backfired when Snorlax came forward with a Body Slam.

Red came out on top the third time as well, though this was an even better match than the last.

“I’m not... going... to...”

Gold stayed conscious long enough for Red to catch him this time.

The fourth time, Gold came fully bundled with a parka, a knit hat, and a scarf.

“Red from Pallet Town, former Pokemon League Champion, undefeated in your reign, conqueror of Team Rocket—“

Typhlosion came out to cut Gold off, ready to face off against Pikachu again.

They were midway through, with Gold’s Typhlosion, Quagsire, and Tyranitar fainted. Pikachu and Venusaur were also out, leaving Blastoise to deal with Gold’s Swellow, when Red’s formerly solitary abode doubled in population.

“Gold! There you are,” said a girl with two pigtails sticking out from under a hat. She was following a Piloswine, and with them was a boy with red hair and an annoyed expression that sat on his face like it lived there. The boy had a Weavile with him.

“Couldn’t you have run off to a tropical island?” the girl continued.

“Or left a note,” the boy said. “Or some evidence that you were still alive.”

“Kris, Silver, I’m in the middle of something,” Gold whined. His Swellow narrowly dodged a blast of water from Blastoise, but Red was also distracted because the third person with them was Green.

Behind Green was his Arcanine, whom Red knew well from many battles. Green was bundled up in an outer coat and a muffler that covered the lower half of his face, bringing Red’s attention to his widened, surprised eyes that made Red’s breath catch.

“Hey, Green! This guy’s Red, right?” said Gold, who was pointing at Red with a big grin. “You were right, this guy’s awesome. But I’m about to take him down. Swellow, use Boom Burst!”

Blastoise, unguided by Red, was caught between bracing for impact or dodging and ended up dazed on his back. Red returned him to his Pokeball for the first time in years and sent out Espeon, who quickly knocked out Swellow with Psyshock and then summarily handled Gold’s Tangrowth and Hitmontop.

“Aw, man,” Gold said. “Over in a flash.”

Espeon, who had battled as though he was on a mission, went over to Green and nudged Green’s waist. Green undid his jacket and reached inside to take out a Pokeball, from which emerged an Umbreon.

Red didn’t recognize her at first, having never seen her in her evolved form. Red had heard from enough sources now that Green, the new leader of the Viridian Gym, had an Umbreon on his team, but Red didn’t expect her to be the same Eevee that Green had started with and taken with him in the early part of his journey. Red thought that Green had given up on that Eevee long ago, when she disappeared from Green’s set team that eventually made him Champion.

Umbreon and Espeon circled each other and then nuzzled as though old friends.

“Whoa, Gold lost,” Kris whispered loudly to Silver.

“How will he ever recover,” Silver replied.

“Guys,” Gold whined. “Not in front of Green.”

“How could you just disappear like that?” Kris scolded. “Your mom’s worried sick over you. You know how many times she’s called you?”

“Mom? I haven’t gotten a call from her in weeks,” Gold said, scrambling for his phone.

“That’s because there’s no reception here,” Silver said, rolling his eyes. “And when was the last time you called her?”

The three of them went back and forth, seeming to have forgotten about Green and Red, who had yet to say a word to each other.

Green had grown taller, though Red only really registered this because he was taller than the three kids. His hair was a bit shorter and better kept, and his face had gotten slimmer, which Red could see in full view now that Green had pulled down his scarf. He was still Green, Red told himself. There was no reason for Red to stare like he was doing.

A cold gust of wind swept through the cavern, cutting off Gold as he tried to defend himself. He sneezed and shuddered, looking suddenly pale.

“We’re going down now,” Green said sharply. “Arcanine.”

Gold reacted too late to Arcanine seizing him by the hood and tossing him through the air and onto Arcanine’s back.

“H-hey! I’m not... wow, it’s really fluffy back here,” Gold said, settling his front against Arcanine’s fur.

“Hey, idiot who’s crazy enough to live here,” said Green, directing his words at Red without looking at him. “What’s the fastest way to get down? We nearly killed ourselves climbing up.”

Despite his words, Green and Arcanine looked completely fine. Kris and Silver, however, were starting to shiver, and their Pokemon looked as though the wild residents of the mountain had given them trouble. Arcanine let out a hot breath near them, but it was too dangerous to warm them quicker than that.

Red felt a twinge of guilt. Though he had certainly not invited anyone to see him here, he hadn’t discouraged Gold either. Pikachu, recovered from earlier, leapt onto Red’s shoulder and pointed his tail towards the outlook. Red began to walk, and the others followed, with Green leading Arcanine, who had Gold on his back, and Kris and Silver following.

“What’s with them?” Silver asked Kris.

“Dunno. It’s weird though. I thought they knew each other,” Kris whispered back.

Green didn’t react. He stared straight ahead. When Red looked at him, Red felt like Green was staring straight through him.

They passed by the natural hot spring, where Piloswine and Weavile stopped to rest for a moment. Arcanine didn’t need the rest, and the hot spring wouldn’t be enough for Gold or his Pokemon, so Green told them to hurry.

There was a narrow opening at the side of Mt. Silver, the only place for large flying Pokemon to land. It was also where the winds were at their worst.

“This is the best way to get down?” Green asked Red. He didn’t look at Red but managed to convey his annoyance at Red all the same.

Green looked back at Kris and Silver. They looked worried. Green seemed to think so too and released Pidgeot, who was as proud as Red remembered and unintimidated by the harsh conditions.

“We’ll need to take two trips,” Green said. He helped get Gold from Arcanine to Pidgeot but hesitated before getting on Pidgeot himself.

“Pidgeot, you remember where the Pokemon center is?”

Pidgeot chirped in response, which apparently meant yes.

“Good. But how to get back...” Green looked around. “Hey, you,” Green said to Charizard. “Can you go with them? You can take Kris. Silver, hold Gold and go with Pidgeot to the Pokemon Center.”

Charizard glanced at Red, who nodded. Trust Green to come up with a plan involving other people’s Pokemon.

“Then come back for us,” Green said to Pidgeot. “Don’t take a nap in a tree and leave us here to die.”

Pidgeot took off with Gold, held by Silver, without a glance back. Charizard followed with Kris.

That left Red with Green, who hadn’t turned around since watching Pidgeot and Charizard take off.

“Your mom’s worried sick about you,” Green said to the sky.

Red couldn’t remember the last time he wrote to his mother. He supposed he could be better at that. But he had told Oak to tell her that he was fine, hadn’t he? He couldn’t remember. He had the League send his monthly stipend home to Pallet Town, at least, which the League would pay so long as they knew Red was alive.

Espeon and Umbreon came over from the hot springs, where they were lounging. Umbreon returned to Green’s side, and Espeon to Red’s.

Green sighed suddenly and said no more, leaving Red with little else to do than stare.

And stare he did. Green had lowered his scarf, allowing Red to see his whole face. Even when Green caught him, Red didn’t look away. Green, oddly enough, did.

Red realized this was the longest they had been alone without battling each other since they were children. He figured it wouldn’t last long.

Red had so much he wanted to say. It was always like that when it came to Green. But of all the things Red had on his mind, one thing lingered.

“You told Gold I was awesome?” Red asked, remembering something Gold had said.

Green exploded, at last directing his anger and energy at Red. “We haven’t seen each other in years, and that’s the first thing you say to me? No, how are you, Green; how’s Pallet Town, where I haven’t been in years; how’s human civilization, which I’ve clearly abandoned; how is everyone I know, most of whom think I’m dead?’” Green yelled.

“Chu,” said Pikachu softly.

“How... how are you?” Red tried.

“Where do I start?” Green said, hissing. “I’m extremely busy, for one, and I’m taking time out of my very packed schedule to escort two Johto brats who were looking for a third one because you decided to make the coldest place in Kanto your fortress of solitude. If something happened to them—“

Green cut himself off. He looked away from Red, redirecting his anger somewhere else. “Does Gramps know you’re here?” Green demanded.

Red shrugged. He had never made that explicit to Oak, but if Red had to guess, the answer was yes.

“Where the hell have you been?” Green asked, seemingly lost for words, but Red understood him perfectly.

At age eleven, Red seemed to have everything. He was Pokemon League Champion, having defeated the Elite Four and the sitting Champion, Green himself. Red remembered that day well: not the induction to the Hall of Fame, which was a blur, but what happened after.

He had flown with Charizard back to Pallet Town. Daisy had opened the door when he knocked. Green was in a bad mood, she told Red, which Red already knew.

Red had Charizard fly him to Green’s window, where Red saw Green crying on his bed. Then Green saw Red and released as much rage and hell on Red as an eleven year old could muster.

Looking back, it was a normal reaction from an eleven-year-old whose parents had recently passed away and whose dreams of fame and glory had been snatched away by his own childhood former best friend. But all eleven-year-old Red knew was that Green had stopped paying attention to Red and starting paying attention to Pokemon. So when Green went on his journey, so did Red. And then their journeys ended with Green crying on his bed, Red Pokemon Champion, and the two of them still no longer friends.

Red refused to be a sitting Champion. Red made that clear to the League, who were initially unhappy but changed their minds when Red stamped out the remainder of Team Rocket in his first year.

At age twelve, Red seemingly gave it all up. He moved from place to place, and it seemed like everywhere he went, Team Rocket had already been. Mt. Silver was one of the few places Team Rocket hadn’t touched. Red hadn’t meant to stay at Mt. Silver for as long as he did. He had lost track of time, and time had finally caught up to him.

“Wherever I felt like going,” Red answered honestly.

Green glanced around the cavern. Red’s Pokemon were watching him warily from their various favorite spots.

“Want to battle?” Red asked at last, unable to help himself.

Green hesitated for a moment, the most obvious sign that he was not the same impetuous child Red once knew so well.

“Thought you’d never ask,” Green said at last. “Where?”

Red led Green back to the open space where he and Gold had battled earlier. Umbreon and Arcanine remained out, and Red wondered which of them Green would choose first.

“Umbreon, you’re up,” Green said, and Umbreon stepped forward.

Pikachu was eager as always and wouldn’t take no for an answer even though he had not fully recovered from his earlier bout with Gold.

Pikachu started off fast with a Thunder Wave, which Umbreon took and shook off with Heal Bell. Pikachu attacked with Iron Tail, and Umbreon healed with Moonlight.

“Pikachu, use Thunder Bolt,” Red said. Umbreon took the damage, though it wasn’t much. Green had trained her well. Umbreon used Protect next. This was a very different style than Red was used to from Green.

“Pikachu, use Play Rough,” Red said, and Pikachu darted forward.

Protect prevented Pikachu from causing damage, but they got the message across.

“Umbreon, use Foul Play,” Green said, taking the offensive at last. Pikachu dodged easily and countered with a close-range Thunder Bolt that Umbreon couldn’t dodge.

Umbreon healed with Moonlight again, but Pikachu attacked with Play Rough. Umbreon took the hit again, but counterattacked immediately with Foul Play, which knocked Pikachu back considerably. Umbreon rounded off her successful comeback with Protect again and waited for Pikachu to get up before going on the offensive again with Foul Play. That attack was the last Pikachu took before fainting.

“Interesting idea to teach a Pikachu Play Rough. Can’t imagine it comes in handy all that often,” Green said, grinning. “Was that just for me? Did you know about Umbreon?”

Red chose not to answer. He was ready for the next round, and so was Blastoise, who hit Umbreon with Surf. The attack had little effect on Umbreon, but she was forced to defend, giving Blastoise an opening to attack with Rapid Spin. Umbreon got in one last Foul Play before Blastoise finished her with Surf.

“Umbreon, come back,” Green said, not rattled at all. “Go, Exeggutor!”

“Blastoise, use Ice Beam,” Red said.

Exegguctor took the hit and countered with Giga Drain. Blastoise hit with another Ice Beam, which froze Exegguctor, ending the match.

“You got lucky with that Ice Beam,” Green said, smiling widely. Red grinned back: luck was part of winning, and they both knew that.

Just as Red thought he had the advantage, Arcanine was next, finishing Blastoise quickly with Wild Charge.

Red chose Snorlax next. Red was surprised at first when Green switched to Rhyperior and then not so surprised when Rhyperior used Stealth Rock.

A roar from the back caves interrupted them. Charizard had returned, presumably with Pidgeot.

Red had never been so displeased to hear Charizard’s return call.

“G-Green!” said Kris, coming from the back caves.

“You idiot,” Green hissed. He took his scarf off and wrapped it around Kris’s own scarf. “Why’d you come back?”

“S-Silver and Gold are both at the Pokemon Center. They need an adult to sign off on their admissions,” she said, teeth chattering.

“Is that what I am now?” Green muttered. “Rhyperior, clean this place up. We’ve got to go.”

Pidgeot was able to take both Green and Kris. Espeon and Pikachu came with Red to see them off.

“You won’t be seeing me here again,” Green said. “If you want to continue where we left off, you can find me at Viridian Gym.”

Pidgeot took off.

—-

Kris, Silver, and Gold continued to visit Red during the next few weeks, taking turns battling him. Green kept his word and didn’t come with them, but he had loaned Arcanine to Silver in exchange for his Gengar and Pidgeot to Kris in exchange for her Scizor to keep them warm and provide transportation.

The three Johto kids were very close. They brought news of Green with them and seemed to be constantly pestering him, something Red envied.

“Man, what was up with Green today? He was on a tear with Gyarados,” Gold said to Kris while Silver was facing off against Red. Red eavesdropped shamelessly, which may have annoyed Silver, but Silver had farther to go than Gold and Kris did. “I think he and Gyarados took out, like, twelve Pokemon.”

“Hard to believe we beat him,” Kris agreed. “And that was him going kind of easy... I heard that gym leaders aren’t supposed to go all out for the sake of evaluating readiness for the Pokemon League.”

“I haven’t beat him since he gave me an Earth Badge,” Gold admitted.

“Me neither,” Kris said, smiling. “I try every Sunday,” she sighed.

“At least we beat him once, unlike someone here!” Gold said, raising his voice so that Silver could hear him.

“Shut up!” Silver snapped.

The day ended with the three of them leaving to stay at the Pokemon Center, where they were now regulars. Charizard, as always, took the flight with them down and returned alone.

More and more of Red’s Pokemon watched and waited for Charizard’s return, as if wishing that Pidgeot would come back with his original trainer on his back. Or maybe that was just Red; in any case, Red’s Pokemon were getting restless. Espeon in particular had taken to waiting at the outlook at nights, always facing the direction of Kanto and Viridian City.

The Johto kids usually took a day in between battles with Red to train among themselves and rest, so Red hadn’t expected them to return the next day.

“Red, it’s an emergency!” Gold said, jumping off of Arcanine’s back as they entered the cavern. “It’s Green!”

Pikachu leapt onto Red’s shoulder immediately, ready to move. Red told himself to stay calm and waited for Gold to continue, motioning for Charizard to get ready to fly.

“It’s his birthday today and we don’t know what to get him!” Gold said.

Pikachu zapped Gold with a light electric shock and earned himself a pat from Red.

“Hey, this is important,” Gold whined.

“We want to get him something nice,” Kris agreed. “He did us a big favor when he signed the form for Gold and Silver’s urgent care that time.”

Green would be turning eighteen. Red would be, too, in two weeks. Green was always ahead.

“You’re, like, his best friend, right?” Gold said. “What do you think he’d want?”

Red wondered where he got that idea, and, as evidence to the contrary, Red just shrugged.

“You’re right, he probably doesn’t care about material gifts,” Kris agreed, seemingly also under the erroneous impression that Red and Green were close.

“What does he like?” Gold wondered aloud.

“Battles,” Silver said.

“Pokemon,” Gold added.

“Studying about friendship,” Kris piped in.

As if suddenly reaching a simultaneous epiphany, the three of them turned to look at Red with a gleam in their eyes.

“Let’s huddle,” Gold said. The three of them whispered together, occasionally glancing at Red and his Pokemon. Red caught snatches of, “No way that’ll work,” and, “What if we try this?”

Finally, they broke the huddle. Gold stepped forward.

“Red from Pallet Town!”

“Augh,” Kris said. “We should have told him to cut this part.”

“Former Pokemon League Champion, undefeated in your reign, Conqueror of Team Rocket and Silver’s Dad—“

“I’ll kill him after,” Silver agreed.

“And Best Friend of Green Oak! We challenge you! And if we win, you’ll fulfill one wish. Deal?”

Red arched an eyebrow at the last part, which was new. He shrugged.

“Awesome! Go, Typhlosion!”

Red chose Blastoise this time, who jumped into battle.

“Typhlosion, use Sunny Day!”

Typhlosion roared and the flames on its back burst and gathered to form a small artificial sun that hovered in the cave, so bright that nobody could look directly at it.

Blastoise used Surf, which was still effective despite Sunny Day. Typhlosion used Focus Blast, though Blastoise shook off most of the hit by countering with Rapid Spin. Typhlosion moved quickly with Erupt, which hurt even though Blastoise had the type advantage, but Blastoise hung on and finished Typhlosion with Surf.

“Typhlosion, return. Next up: I choose you!”

It was Kris’s Meganium, under Gold’s direction. If their goal was to surprise Red, they succeeded.

Gold’s grin told Red that this wasn’t going to go well. “Meganium, use Solar Beam!”

With Sunny Day in effect, Meganium fired off the beam right away, knocking out Blastoise instantly.

Red returned Blastoise to his Pokeball. Gold had that look of fierce determination that again reminded Red of Green. Shaking it off, Red gathered himself for the next move. Sunny Day would stay in effect for one more turn, which would be long enough.

“Go, Venusaur! Use Sludge Bomb,” Red said. Venusaur’s ability allowed him to move quickly in harsh sunlight, while Meganium was on her heels. Meganium tried to evade, but the only Pokemon to dodge a Sludge Bomb from Venusaur was Pikachu, and Meganium was no exception.

The artificial sun faded just as Meganium fell and was poisoned. Meganium got up and countered with Dragon Tail, forcing Red to switch Venusaur to a random member of the team: Snorlax, the only member of the team left slower than Meganium. Meganium took advantage and hit Snorlax with Sleep Powder. Meganium fainted from poison, but she had bought time for Gold to switch to Hitmontop. Hitmontop hit Snorlax with a super-effective Close Combat. It woke Snorlax up, but too late: Hitmontop finished Snorlax with another super-effective Close Combat.

Kris and Silver cheered on Gold from the side, pleased that their strategy seemed to be working. Gold, in particular, had always struggled against Snorlax.

Red found himself smiling. Working together, the three of them were able to push him farther than any of them could individually.

Red chose Espeon this time, going for type-advantage again. Espeon was also faster than Hitmontop, knocking Hitmontop out and forcing Gold to switch to another surprise: Silver’s Weavile. Espeon’s Psyshock attack had no effect on Weavile, starting the match from scratch.

“You better know what you’re doing,” Silver said from the side.

“I always feel weird using your Pokemon,” Gold replied. “Weavile, use Pursuit!”

“Espeon, use Dazzling Gleam!”

Espeon and Weaville were closely matched in speed, but Espeon had the advantage of experience, and his attack hit first. It was super effective, but Weavile took it and countered with Pursuit again. Espeon recovered using Morning Sun, but Weavile was relentless and eventually knocked out Espeon with Pursuit.

Red was down to his last three Pokemon. Things were getting exciting. He chose his most trusted partner to turn things around.

“Pikachu, go - use Play Rough,” Red said, and Weavile barely saw Pikachu coming before he was flat on his back.

“Go, Tyranitar!” said Gold, still confident when he would normally start to worry. He had an advantage over Red: he knew which Pokemon Red had left, while Red was left wondering whether he would see more of Silver or Kris’s Pokemon instead of Gold’s.

Pikachu stayed out, itching to take on an opponent three times his size and with obvious type advantages. Pikachu moved quickly with an Iron Tail to Tyranitar’s face, dodging Tyranitar’s sharp claws. Tyranitar used Stealth Rock, which would make things harder for Charizard and Venusaur, but suffered another Play Rough from Pikachu. Even with those attacks, neither of which were Pikachu’s specialty, Tyranitar dealt Pikachu heavy damage with an Earthquake. Pikachu managed to get in one final Iron Tail before falling to Stealth Rock.

Stealth Rock would be deadly to Charizard, but Red had no way to clear the hazard. He chose Venusaur, who took the damage but knocked out Tyranitar with Giga Drain before she could use Earthquake.

Two left for both of them now. This was the farthest any of the Johto trio had ever pushed Red.

“Go, Blissey!”

Kris’s Blissey took to the field. Venusaur used Giga Drain to recover health, entering into a war of attrition with Blissey, whose main attack was Seismic toss. Eventually, Venusaur outlasted Blissey, only to fall to Gold’s final Pokeman, Silver’s Feraligatr.

Red foresaw his inevitable defeat. He had never lost before and only witnessed countless others losing, many for the first time, to him. He thought he would have felt denial, or frustration, or any multitude of emotions he witnessed from the opponents Red had defeated over the years. Instead, Red felt an odd sense of relief and a rekindled desire to train harder than ever.

Red looked at Charizard. They had only the slimmest hope of victory. But Charizard flew in anyway, letting off a powerful Flare Blitz that did considerable damage to Feraligatr even with his type advantage. Charizard dodged Feraligatr’s Liquidation attack and used Dragon Claw. Feraligatr managed to hold on long enough for Charizard to fall to Stealth Rock.

And it was over. Red returned Charizard to his Pokeball for the first time in years. They were going to need to go to the Pokemon Center.

“We did it!” Gold shouted, turning to Kris and Silver. Kris ran in to hug him and even Silver was smiling and came to pat Gold on the back. “Hey Red! We won!”

“Good job,” Red said smiling despite himself.

“As a condition of winning...” Gold said, glancing at Kris. “We get a wish, remember?”

Red stared the three of them down, who had all suddenly lost their bullishness.

“We want you to come to Green’s birthday party with us,” Kris blurted out finally. “It’s in Pallet Town at Professor Oak’s Lab.”

The three of them steeled themselves to look at Red in the eye, who had to turn away. He didn’t know what to say. He gathered Pikachu in his arms and started the trek down the mountain.

“H-hey! Red! You promised!” said Gold, starting after Red. Silver reached out and held Gold back by the elbow.

Red kept walking, going down the winding, narrow tunnels that likely only he knew about. Sure enough, in a few minutes, he had lost them. This was a shortcut to the Pokemon Center that he hadn’t bothered to tell the others about, since they had gotten so used to flying down. Red’s reticence came in handy in times like these, when he wanted to run away.

Nurse Joy blinked once, her only sign of surprise when Red walked in and asked for his Pokemon to be healed. Red waited in the trainer’s lounge in the meantime. The Johto trio didn’t come by, even though ample time had passed.

“Sir, your Pokemon are healed,” Nurse Joy said, turning Red’s set of Pokeballs and Pikachu to him, who jumped onto Red’s shoulder. “They’re very healthy but could use a groom. I know someone very good in Pallet Town.”

Red had always known that he had never fooled her for a second.

Red let out his team outside, who had grown a taste for being outside of their Pokeballs, as challenging as that was with their collective size. Pikachu immediately leapt down to talk to the rest of them, not letting Red get a word in edgewise until the team was already nodding their agreement to something.

“So, where are we going?” Red asked Pikachu, who leapt back up to Red when satisfied with the team’s decision. “Mt. Silver?”

The team was silent at that.

“Or back to Pallet Town?”

The team roared. Pallet Town it was.

They didn’t make it back until dusk. They hadn’t left until late afternoon and then made a stop in Viridian Forest. By the time they got to Pallet Town, all was quiet, including Professor Oak’s lab. There was a sign on the door: “We’re at Lush,” was all it said.

It was a short walk from the lab to his house. Red knocked.

“Red? My goodness, it’s you!” said his mother, who had opened the door.

“Hi Mom,” said Red, looking down at her. She seemed to have shrunk over the years.

“You’re grown so much,” his mother said. “Come in, come in.”

“Red, my boy,” Professor Oak said, who had risen from the table where he had been having tea with Red’s mother.

“Professor,” Red greeted. He hadn’t realized how long it had been since he had seen the older man in person; it felt like they had been in touch, or maybe Red had been keeping tabs on him through his publications.

“Red, you’ve been just awful,” Red’s mother said, tearing up at last. “I was about to ask what my own son was doing in my home.”

That was the worst Red had felt in years. His mother came to hug him, which was more familiar and comforting than he deserved.

“You must be here for Green’s birthday party,” his mother said after drying her tears. “Of course, you couldn’t come just to visit your mother.”

“The dinner party is over. You just missed them,” Oak said wryly. “I’ve been told the afterparty is at Lush. Hard to believe that place is still open after all these years.”

“And that silly boy invited you and me to go with them,” Red’s mother chuckled. “Two old people like us... We would ruin all the fun.”

“I’m doing everyone a favor and not watching my grandson have his first legal drink,” Oak agreed. “At least Daisy’s there to keep an eye on him.”

“Oh, Green is such a sweet boy,” Red’s mother clucked. “Say, Red, are you going? I think you should.”

Just like that, Red found himself being pushed outside his house.

“Don’t stay out too late,” his mother said. “Though I suppose one more night of breaking curfew won’t hurt.”

“Tell Green he’s still got Gym duty tomorrow,” Oak piped in.

Viridian City looked the same as always: there was the Pokemon Center, the PokeMart, the residential neighborhood, the Pokemon House, the Gym, the one grocery store, the short row of restaurants, and Lush, the only bar between Pewter City and Pallet Town. It was currently loud even from the sky as Charizard descended.

Red had an idea of who was inside by the Pokemon who were outside: Brock’s Onix was trying to rest while Surge’s Raichu jumped around with Misty’s Starmie, earning an irritated roar from Onix whenever Starmie splashed him with water. Sabrina’s Alakazam was levitating above Blaine’s Rapidash near the tree where Erika’s Vileplume had settled itself against. An Ariados hung from the branches; Red guessed it was Janine’s, who Red had yet to meet.

Umbreon was waiting for them at the entrance of the bar. Like a gatekeeper, she refused to move until Red had let out Espeon. The two of them went off together as they had the first time Red had seen Umbreon. Charizard preferred to stay out, and Pikachu joined in the fun with Raichu and Starmie, much to Onix’s irritation.

That left Red alone at the entrance of the bar. He opened the door.

It was chaos inside. The seven other Kanto Gym Leaders were there, along with Karen and Will of the Elite Four, Kris, Gold, and Silver, Bill, and others that Red didn’t recognize.

“Red!” said Bill, interrupting his conversation with Blaine and Lt. Surge. “I can’t believe my eyes! Is that really you? You’re practically a giant now!”

“Red!” It was Gold this time, calling Red over from the bar, where he and Kris and Silver were sitting with yellow wrist bands. “You made it! See, told you he’d come,” Gold said to Silver.

A crowd started to gather around them, familiar and unfamiliar faces craning to get a look at Red.

“Red, is that really you?” Daisy Oak had come over with Erika. “You’ve gotten so tall. Have you talked to my kid brother yet? He’ll be glad to see you.”

Daisy took him by the elbow and escorted him through the crowd. Erika and the other Kanto Gym Leaders gathered together, effectively blocking others from following them.

“Green,” Daisy said, her arm tucked around Red’s. “Look who’s here.”

Green turned around. He was dressed in a short-sleeved buttoned shirt and jeans, more climate appropriate in Viridian City than would have been on Mt. Silver. He was with a man that Red didn’t recognize.

The man was around their age, with good looks and lean muscle. He had bright stones in his hair and seemed to dress well, although Red was a poor judge of that. The man and Green seemed to be in deep conversation before Daisy interrupted them.

Green glanced at his sister with an odd look before erasing it and replacing it with a sharp-toothed grin.

“Leave it to you to steal the spotlight on my birthday,” Green drawled. He was holding an empty wine glass.

“Pardon us, Grant,” Daisy cut in. “Have you two been introduced? Red, this is Grant, leader of Cyllage Gym in Kalos. He and Green studied together in Kalos.”

Grant said something to Green in French, who replied curtly in kind.

“Nice to meet you,” Grant said. He had a light accent. “I’ve heard so much. You and Green have known each other since childhood?”

Daisy let go of Red’s arm and switched to Green’s. The siblings whispered something to each other, but Red couldn’t catch what.

“Yeah,” Red said.

“Odd that I’ve known Green for years and haven’t met you. You haven’t been around much?” Grant asked.

“No,” Red answered.

“Hmm,” Grant said, taking a sip of wine. “Ah, Valerie,” he said suddenly, directing his attention elsewhere.

A woman with long hair dressed in pink floated over. She and Grant spoke to each other in French quickly, shooting a glance or two at Red.

“Green, your glass is empty. That won’t do,” Valerie said with a Johto accent. She took the glass from Green’s fingers.

“Refill it for me?” Green asked, smiling at her.

“Of course. Grant, shall we? We’ve got to keep the birthday boy properly watered.”

“And leave him unattended?” Grant asked, shamelessly looking Red up and down.

“We’ll just be a minute,” Valerie promised, pulling Grant away.

Daisy waited until they were gone before pecking Green on the cheek. “Erika will be looking for me. Red, so wonderful to see you again.”

Then Red and Green were alone, or as alone as they could be, surrounded by partygoers, some of whom were obviously eavesdropping.

“Let’s get some air,” Green said, leading the way outside. He went through the back exit, where the Pokemon were occupying themselves while waiting for their trainers.

“That’s better,” Green said. “It was way too hot in there.”

They were standing far apart. Somehow, Green had gotten ahead of Red again.

“The Johto brats kept saying you would come,” Green said, back to Red so that Red couldn’t see his expression. “I told them there wasn’t a chance in hell. They thought we were best friends, you know that? I had to tell them we haven’t spoken in years. I don’t know what we are.”

“You said you hated me,” Red said, reminding them of that day.

Green laughed. “I did hate you.”

Red came closer to Green, who didn’t move. Green turned around at last, expression neutral. In the bright moonlight, Red could see the slight flush on his cheeks.

“I thought I put you behind me, and here you are, perfect, goody two shoes Red, waltzing back into my life,” Green said.

“I waltzed into your life?” Red asked. “I was doing just fine until you decided to show up with- with your scarf—“

“You challenged me,” Green interrupted.

“You accepted,” Red pressed.

“So I did. We never finished, did we?” Green said. “My Gym’s right there.”

Blood pumping, Red had a hard time thinking of reasons why he couldn’t take Green up on his offer. He very much wanted to pick up where they left off at Mt. Silver, and even more so wanted to take Green away from this open space to somewhere they could be alone.

“Hey, Green!” called Grant, like a splash of cold water. He and Valerie had finally found them outside. Valerie had refilled Green’s glass and hovered with Grant near the back entrance.

“You should go back inside,” Red said, taking a step back.

“Are you running away?” Green asked.

Red motioned for Pikachu and Espeon to come over. They already knew it was time to go.

—

Red’s mother had tidied up his old room while he was gone. The old SNES was gone, and she had, for whatever reason, put in a newer TV. His closet was empty. On his bed were clothes that his mother borrowed from Daisy, who took them from Green. Red changed and folded his clothes and left them in a pile on his desk; his closet didn’t have hangers.

The next morning, his old clothes were gone. On the table were breakfast and a note, saying his mother was gone for the day.

After eating, Red stepped out. Pallet Town, as always, was quiet. Some of the townspeople said hello.

Red needed to go somewhere. Viridian City was closest but not an option. The second closest was Cinnabar Island.

Red had heard from Lance and others that Cinnabar Island experienced an eruption that had changed the face of the island, but seeing it in person was a shock. The Pokemon Center had been rebuilt, but the other buildings were gone.

The island seemed smaller now that the buildings had been leveled and replaced with vegetation springing from fertile igneous rock. The walk from the Pokemon Center to where the Pokemon Mansion used to be was longer than it looked, or maybe it just felt that way. There was no sign of the Mansion left. It was as though no human was ever there. Red couldn’t decide if the feeling he was experiencing was emptiness or peace. He looked around as though expecting something or someone, but there was nothing.

Red took a piece of igneous rock from the ground and put it in his pocket as proof of the current state of things. The base of the volcano had been roped off, leaving Red nowhere to go. He walked to the shore facing the Seafoam Islands, where Blaine was waiting for him.

“Is that really you, Red? I saw you the other night, but you’d grown so much. And you’ve got a new outfit. Those clothes look familiar…. Quiet, isn’t it? I come back here sometimes just to think about how things used to be. Not too often though.”

Blaine looked the same; only the wrinkles around his eyes and his hands, which were thinner, showed that he had aged.

“It’s all gone. The Mansion, that is. The journals, the old lab equipment, all of it. The people survived, though, just barely. We were warned just in time. It’s like none of it ever happened… but we know better, don’t we?

“My gym’s at Seafoam now. I’ll miss the volcano, for sure,” Blaine sighed. “I’m glad you came, Red. You’ve seen so many things for your age. After everything settled down, I started thinking that you’d be glad to see this. An end to the Pokemon Mansion, and a fresh start for Cinnabar.”

Red said goodbye to Blaine after dropping by his relocated gym in Seafoam. The next stop was naturally Cerulean Cave.

The Cave was now accessible to all who had six badges, and trainers, eager to prove themselves, were scattered around.

Inside, there were now torch lights in certain areas. Red went to the area where he had first found Mewtwo waiting. A trainer was there instead, battling a wild Arbok.

When Red left Cerulean Cave, the sun was starting to set. Charizard was already in the air and about to return to Pallet Town when they saw Misty waving at them from her gym.

“Red, we didn’t have a chance to talk yesterday,” Misty said when Charizard landed and Red hopped to the ground. “How about dinner?”

Misty led Red to what Red recalled as her favorite restaurant.

“Table for two,” Misty said as they walked in.

“Of course, Ms. Misty. Right this way.”

They sat at a table in a sectioned off room, where they were the only table occupied.

“I think the last we talked was when you were in Cerulean for Mewtwo,” Misty said after they ordered. “When you told me you were leaving to keep training, I didn’t think that would be the last we would talk for four years. What brings you back? Everyone’s dying to know,” Misty said with a smile. “Especially if the answer has something to do with the fact that Green finally found you.”

Red should have known that she wanted to shamelessly gossip. Misty watched him carefully, but he didn’t bite on her hook, choosing instead to dig into his meal.

“Green’s been a gym leader for what, four years now? He started when he was fourteen. Our fearless leader, when he’s around at least. I’ve heard from Daisy that he’s been around a lot more, lately. Anything to do with you, Red? You are wearing Green’s clothes, aren’t you? People have been trying to set up Green for years,” Misty hinted. “It’s never worked out, thanks to him. Quite a heartbreaker, that boy.”

“Nothing to do with me,” Red said at last.

“Don’t be so sure about that,” Misty said. “I remember what you were like when you were kids. And what Green was like when everyone thought you were missing. He was never around. Always wandering here and there...”

“Traveling for research,” Red said.

“That was part of it,” Misty conceded. “I was surprised by how interested Green was in research. No offense to academia, but that would have been such a waste. Green’s such a master of training and battling. He’s really put Viridian City back on the map in terms of premier battling.”

Misty’s familiar tone filled Red with envy, a familiar emotion lately. While Red was away, it was clear that Green had built a full and complete life. Red wasn’t surprised; in some ways, it was what he hoped for, and in others, what he feared.

“I think he was always looking for you, though he would never admit it. Red? What are you thinking?” Misty asked.

“Whether there’s any place for me,” Red found himself saying.

Misty gave him a sympathetic look. “That’s up to you. And Green.”

Red didn’t answer.

—-

The next day, after Red had just finished eating breakfast with his mother, they got a knock at the door. Green looked surprised at first to see Red at the door and then quickly transitioned to anger.

“You are not wearing my clothes,” hissed Green. “I did not agree to this.”

Red shrugged. He wondered how Green had found out. Red started to take off the shirt when Green grabbed his wrist.

“Idiot! I meant I’m taking you shopping!” Green said, flushed an angry red. “Even though this is a complete waste of my time. We’re going to Celadon. Come on.”

Celadon’s department stores had doubled in number since Red had last visited. Green chose the most expensive one, not even asking Red for his preference.

The clothing selection process consisted of Green taking a look at Red and then pulling things off the rack while muttering to himself. Red, who had little fashion sense, had no idea how Green was choosing what. The clothes Green picked didn’t look like things Red had seen Green wear recently.

“Here, try these for size,” Green said, shoving a few things into Red’s arms.

Green was waiting with a pile of things when Red came out of the dressing room with a top and bottom. Green was quietly unimpressed for a few seconds before saying, “Good, they fit. Let’s go.”

“What about those?” Red asked, pointing to the clothes Green had picked out.

“They’ll fit. Come on, get changed. I don’t have all day.”

Red came out a second time to see that Green had switched some things out. While Red didn’t have much preference for clothing, he had a feeling whatever Green picked would be more stuffy than Red was used to.

Red walked over to a rack of printed tees. He picked out a few that were his size.

“Sometimes I think you’re still eleven,” Green muttered. “What, are buttons too hard?”

Red pulled off the shirt he was wearing and tried the one off the rack. The size was fine, at least. He glanced at Green, who judged him in silence and then shook his head.

“Someone needs to talk to you about public nudity, but it’s not going to be me. Let’s go already.”

At the register, Green gave Red a disdainful look before handing over a credit card. Red didn’t mind: Green had expensive taste.

They went outside when they were done. Red had on one of the printed tees and returned the clothes that he had been wearing to Green in a small bag.

“I thought my mom had asked you,” Red said.

“She asked my meddling older sister,” Green said. “Who didn’t bother to ask me before giving my clothes away.”

“I should thank her then,” Red said, unable to keep the smugness from his voice that crept in from the fun of teasing Green.

“I suppose you should,” Green said curtly, wiping his expression clean and taking Red aback with his poor reaction.

Before Red could try to recover, they were interrupted with a loud whisper.

“Isn’t that Green Oak?”

“Who’s that guy with him?”

Three young trainers near the Celadon Gym had recognized Green and noticed Red as an afterthought.

“Hey,” one of the trainers said. “Are you Green Oak?”

“That’s me,” Green said. “Are you going to challenge Erika?”

“Yeah,” the trainer said.

“Good luck,” Green.

“Thanks,” the trainer said, slightly breathless. “You’re my hero. Hey…”

“You’re not ready to battle me,” Green said. “Sorry.”

The trainer was crestfallen, but he recovered quickly when he noticed Red. His expression changed to opportunistic when he noticed Pikachu.

“How about you?” the trainer asked Red. “Up for a battle?”

Green sighed softly. “Look,” he said at the same time that Red nodded.

“Great. How about over there?” the trainer said, pointing to the clearing near Route 7.

Red started walking. Green followed, saying in a low voice, “What are you doing?”

The trainer looked confident, with his two friends cheering him on from the side. He held out his first Pokeball.

Pikachu leapt off Red’s shoulder, ready to go. The trainer grinned and released a Rhydon.

Red admitted that he was impressed. The Rhydon was at a higher level than Red had expected, though Red suspected that he was the trainer’s strongest Pokemon and would be little help against Erika.

“All right, Green! Watch this. Rhydon, use Earthquake!”

Pikachu allowed Rhydon to move first, dodging the cracks in the earth that sprang up until Pikachu was within striking distance.

“Pikachu,” Red said, “Use Iron tail!”

Rhydon keeled over instantly. Pikachu hit him again with another Iron Tail, and it was over.

The trainer was stunned.

Green sighed. “Are you really going to do this?” he asked Red, who didn’t answer.

The trainer stared at Pikachu in disbelief and then at Red. He shook his head rapidly and chose his next Pokemon.

“Go, Miltank! Use Roll Out!”

Pikachu didn’t wait this time, moving first with Thunder Wave, preventing Miltank’s attack and leaving her vulnerable to Thunder Bolt.

Two down. The trainer’s friends were shocked. Pikachu had yet to take any damage.

The trainer facing Red realized that he was completely outclassed. He held a third Pokeball in his hands, hesitating whether he should go on or not.

“Who are you?” the trainer asked.

“His name’s Red,” Green said. “You just lost to a former Pokemon League Champion. Don’t feel bad about that. But challenging someone just because you see that he has a Pikachu is not a great idea. You done?” Green said to Red.

Red didn’t answer, keeping his eyes on the trainer. The trainer wavered for a second before putting his Pokeball back.

Pikachu, knowing when he’d won, hopped back onto Red’s shoulder. Red nodded at the trainer and turned to face Green, who was amused but was trying to hide it.

Red scratched Pikachu behind the ears. He had done well.

“Guess you didn’t get the memo about taking it easy on junior trainers,” Green said, letting a smile slip through.

“He had a Rhydon,” Red answered.

“So did I,” Green said. “Remember when he creamed you?” Green said to Pikachu, who swiped half-heartedly at him.

Green’s ringtone interrupted them.

“Hello? Yeah, I’m on my way,” Green said. “That’s what you said about the last one. I’ll be there soon. Bye. My Gym is calling,” Green said, putting his phone back in his pocket. “I should go. What are you going to do now?” Green asked.

Red shrugged, which seemed to annoy Green greatly.

“Fine,” Green snapped. “Like I care.”

He jumped on Pidgeot, who threw Red a judgmental look before taking off, leaving Red more frustrated than ever. Pikachu seemed to sense it and gave him a brief shock.

“Sorry,” Red muttered to him.

“Hey!”

The trainers were still there. The pair who hadn’t battled Red seemed to want to take their chances.

“What do you think?” Red asked Pikachu. “Some exercise for you.”

Pikachu leapt off his shoulder.

—

Eventually, Erika came out of her Gym to scold Red in person.

“Red, I’m happy you’re back, but you know better,” Erika said, referring to the line of trainers waiting to get into the Pokemon Center. “You, too, Pikachu. You’re always welcome in Celadon City, but not to cause trouble like this. What’s gotten into you?”

Erika was right, but Red had nothing to say. He didn’t know the answer. He thought battling a bunch of junior trainers would be amusing and perhaps fun for Pikachu, but after the fifth one or so, Red had begun to get bored, and his mood after Green left went from bad to worse.

“Let me see your Venusaur,” Erika requested.

Red obliged. Venusaur recognized Erika instantly and allowed her to approach.

“Hm, I thought so. Well, Venusaur, so good to see you again. You are healthy and strong as ever, but you could use a groom,” said Erika, shooting a stab of guilt at Red. “Daisy Oak is excellent. She would probably give you a discount,” Erika said to Red. “And maybe even her little brother’s number, which most people are dying to have.”

Red’s head snapped up, but Erika said nothing more. That was her gentle way of telling Red to go, and Red wasn’t in a position to refuse.

Daisy was home when they landed and waited for them in her backyard, where Clefable and Professor Oak were waving at them.

“Erika told me you were coming,” Daisy said. “Your Pokemon are a little too big to come inside. Why don’t we start with Charizard here?”

Daisy was very prepared. She had her grooming supplies for Charizard already out on plastic fold-out tables in the yard. Red also recognized shearers for Venusaur and shell polish for Blastoise. Different sizes of combs, some large enough for Snorlax, others small enough for Pikachu and Espeon, were already set out.

“I’ve gotten a lot of hints from other people that your Pokemon could use a little tidying up,” Daisy explained at Red’s puzzled look. “And you, too,” Daisy smiled. “I heard that my little brother took you shopping, and that you stayed around Celadon after he left and caused Erika a bit of a headache.”

“Sorry,” Red said. “How much do I owe you?”

“I was hoping you could do me a favor: I was going to have dinner with my brother, but I’ll need to stay with your larger Pokemon until late evening. Your mother has kindly offered to make me and Grandpa dinner. Would you be able to meet with my brother for dinner? I don’t want him to eat alone.”

The thought of dinner with Green while he was in the mood Red had last seen made Red pessimistic about how such a dinner would go. But it was such a simple request that Red couldn’t refuse.

“Great. You can take Pikachu and Espeon with you. I won’t be able to get to them until tomorrow, anyway,” Daisy said.

“Green’s probably still at the gym. You can meet him there,” Oak said. “And don’t let him talk you out of dinner! His article was submitted last week, so he’s got no excuse.”

—-

If Red hadn’t walked past the sign, he would never have guessed that the gym was the same place he had last seen Giovanni all those years ago. The interior had been completely redesigned with terrain suitable for different types of Pokemon: there was a large pool, real grass, high ceilings, and long vertical glass windows letting in natural sunlight. Green’s resident trainers were young men and women around Green and Red’s age, waiting at the sides while Green was talking to who seemed to be the last challenger of the day.

“You must be Violet,” Green said. “Good job beating my trainers.”

“Thanks,” the trainer said. She was on the young side, maybe a few years older than them.

Red settled himself to the side while Green and Violet got themselves ready.

“Go, Rhyperior!”

“Go, Heracross!”

“Hey, are you here to challenge Green?” one of the resident trainers asked Red, coming over from where she had been watching Green and Violet with the other residents.

“Not really,” Red said.

“How badges do you have?”

Red hesitated for a moment, which he could tell the resident didn’t like. Then he showed her his badges, which she liked even less.

“All right, wise guy. Get ready to battle,” she said. “Go, Lickilicki!”

“Uh,” Red said. They had the attention of the other residents, two of whom were coming over.

“Salma, what are you doing?” one of them asked. “Who’s this guy?”

“Some joker who thinks he can come in here with a fake Earth Badge,” Salma said angrily. “I’ll show him! Hey, choose a Pokemon already!”

Red glanced at Pikachu, who seemed equally ambivalent about another battle with an over-eager trainer after a day of battling a horde of them. Salma didn’t look like she would take no for an answer, so Red drew the only Pokeball he had on hand, which was Espeon’s.

“Lickilicki, use Body Slam!”

Espeon dodged and used Calm Mind, and then attacked with Psyshock, which Lickilicki was able to withstand. Lickilicki attacked again with Hyper Beam, landing a direct hit on Espeon and forcing him to use Morning Sun to recover. Espeon then moved quickly and hit Lickilicki with Psyshock again, knocking it out.

“Lickilicki, return! Go, Slowking!”

“Espeon, return,” Red called. Pikachu hopped off his shoulder and took care of things quickly with Thunder Bolt. Slowking took the first hit and countered with Surf, he but fell to Pikachu’s second bolt. Slowking was apparently Salma’s last Pokemon on hand because she conceded defeat.

“Wow, that’s the fastest I’ve seen Salma lose in a while,” one of the residents said.

“Hey, you’ve got an Earth Badge?” the other resident said to Red.

Red took out his badge collection and displayed it, including the Earth Badge he had won so long ago.

“It’s got to be a fake,” Salma insisted. “I’ve never seen you before.”

The two residents came forward. “We haven’t seen you, either. There’s no way you won that from Green. Are you here to challenge him? If you are, you’ve got to go through us.”

Red craned his head around them to look at Green, who was still battling the challenger and carefully avoiding eye contact with Red.

“My name is Ida and that’s Elan. We’re a double battle team, so pick two Pokemon, and let’s go.”

Salma stepped back and let the two residents take the battlefield. “Good luck, both of you. He’s good.”

“Go, Azumarill and PorygonZ!”

Red called out Espeon again, who was ready to go, as was Pikachu.

“Not choosing new Pokemon, huh?” Elan said. “Brave move.”

Red had no other choice, but they didn’t know that. Pikachu was the fastest of all of them and attacked Azumarill quickly with Thunder Bolt. Espeon followed on and hit Azumarill with Psyshock, knocking her out quickly and leaving just PorygonZ.

PorygonZ attacked Espeon with Tri Attack, which burned and damaged him. Pikachu used Thunder Bolt, which Espeon followed on with Psyshock after PorygonZ used Conversion and changed to a Ground Type. PorygonZ used Recover, but it couldn’t withstand Pikachu’s Iron Tail and Espeon’s Moon Blast, which knocked it out.

“No way,” Ida said.

“Green will be thrilled,” Elan said sarcastically.

They turned to face the main battle, which was coming to an end. Violet’s last Pokemon, Blaziken, was facing off against Umbreon. Umbreon finished Blaziken with Foul Play, ending the match. Green thanked Violet for a good effort, and she took defeat gracefully.

“What’s going on?” the fourth and fifth residents asked, coming over now that Green’s match had ended.

“This guy says he’s got an Earth Badge,” Salma said.

“No way,” the fourth resident said. “I’ve never seen him. Hey, what’s your name? Green’s only given badges to Gold and Kris, and you don’t look like them to me.”

“His name’s Red, and I didn’t give him his badge,” Green said, coming over at last with Umbreon. “He earned it from Giovanni, like I did.”

The residents looked at Green in unison and with equal surprise.

“Red?” Ida asked. “That Red?”

“Scram. Gym’s closed for the day,” Green said, cutting off his residents before they could ask more questions. They left, whispering to themselves, clearly talking about Green and Red.

“How was the challenger?” Red asked when they were alone.

“That one was actually pretty good,” Green admitted.

“They’re normally not?” Red asked.

“No,” Green said simply.

“You were going easy.”

“So you were watching and still managed to beat my residents without breaking a sweat? I guess they’ve been slacking off,” Green remarked. “I wasn’t kidding when I said that there’s a memo about battling junior trainers. A Gym Leader’s job is to teach, and mine specifically is to test for readiness for Victory Road. You’d be surprised how hard that is to pass.”

“I would?”

“That year,” Green said, and Red knew which year he was referring to, “It was just you and me.”

Red wasn’t as surprised as Green predicted. Red knew that there were many unusual things about their journey.

“What do you think?” Green asked, changing the topic. He gestured at the gym.

“It’s nice,” Red offered.

“I spent months getting this place remodeled, doing the design myself, and all you can come up with is nice?” Green grinned. “It took a while to clean out the stink of Team Rocket in particular. I heard you had helped stamp them out,” Green went on. He had an odd look on his face, like he wanted to say something but didn’t know what.

“I heard the same about you,” Red said. “Lance told me about the formula in Kalos.”

“How much did he tell you?” Green asked.

“Not much,” Red admitted. “He said you had done well.”

“That’s how he phrased it, huh? Well, the truth is, I was scared out of my mind half the time. If it weren’t for Umbreon here, I don’t know where I’d be.”

Umbreon sat still near Green, her posture perfect. Green knelt down to stroke her back. Meanwhile, Espeon was at Red’s side, along with Pikachu. In the short time Red had seen them together, Espeon and Umbreon seemed very close.

“Hi again,” Green said to Espeon. “You remember Kalos, don’t you?”

Espeon mewed and flicked his tail.

Red remembered the day when Lance had tracked Red down and asked for Red’s help with an operation in Kalos. Red had been at Cerulean Cave at the time, trying to find Mewtwo and stop him from terrorizing the local trainers.

Lance mentioned Green would be working the operation, too, and Red realized that he hadn’t seen Green in two years. It was a frightening thought considering that Green had been Red’s obsession throughout childhood. Just hearing Green’s name seemed to electrify Red and made him feel the need to chase.

Instead, Red sent Espeon. And while he told himself at the time that it was the right thing, he had regretted it ever since.

“What are you doing here?” Green asked at last. “And where are the rest of your Pokemon?”

“With your sister. She asked me to take you to dinner. Apparently you need reminders to eat.”

Green’s cheeks reddened just barely. “She should mind her own business,” Green muttered.

“She’s grooming my team. It’s the least I can do,” Red said.

The pleasant flush of Green’s cheeks faded quickly. “Oh? Well, then. Maybe you should take Daisy to dinner then,” Green said coldly.

Green began walking to the exit of the gum without another word. Umbreon followed.

Caught staring at Green, Red was unprepared when he felt a sharp whack at his leg from Espeon, who had whipped his tail at Red.

Pikachu hopped onto Red’s shoulder. “Pika?”

Espeon mewed back and followed Green out of the gym, waiting impatiently for Red to open the doors.

When Red got out of the gym, Green was still walking. Red ran to catch up to him.

“Hey,” Red said. “Hey.”

“What?” Green snapped, whirling around. He looked genuinely angry, which took Red aback for a moment.

“Your sister’s eating dinner with my mom and Professor Oak.”

“Oh, would you get a clue?” Green asked, exasperated. “Can’t you get what I’m trying to say?”

“Can’t you just say it?” Red asked, just as frustrated. Green was supposed to be the one good with words.

“Fine,” Green snarled. “I’ll say it. Stop trying to get to Daisy through me, and leave me alone.”

Green said his words with such conviction that, for a brief second, he had managed to convince Red that Red was trying to get to Daisy, even though he had just left Daisy in Pallet Town to come to Viridian City. And in any case, Red wouldn’t need to get to Daisy through Green. He could just walk back to Pallet Town.

“But I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you,” Green continued coldly. “My sister is often at Celadon with Erika, and I think they’re getting serious. Sorry.”

“I don’t have hopes for Daisy,” Red said, finally processing what Green was implying.

“Right,” Green said flatly. “So the night I saw you in Viridian, it was just a coincidence that my sister was on your arm.”

Red thought back to the party, when Daisy had rescued him from the crowd and brought him to Green. He remembered Green’s odd expression at the time, though admittedly Red hadn’t paid as much attention to that as he had to Grant’s proximity to Green.

“Tell Daisy to leave me alone, too,” Green said bitterly. “I know what she’s trying to do, and it’s obviously not going to work.”

Green was beginning to unravel, but so was Red.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Red said.

“Of course you don’t.”

“That doesn’t help,” Red said angrily. “I’m trying.”

“Why?” Green burst out. “Why do you bother? You don’t care about me,” Green said, volume rising. “If it were up to you, you would never have seen me again. If not for those Johto brats, and your mom, and my grandpa, and my sister, and Misty, and Blaine, and everyone else who keeps meddling, you wouldn’t be here! And I’m trying to tell you that I am fine with that! Do you understand? I am,” Green’s voice caught, “Fine with that. So don’t force yourself.”

It was a bad habit of Red’s that whenever he was pushed, his reaction was to push back, even when the better path might have been to allow himself to be pushed. Green was pushing him, and specifically, pushing him away. Red recognized the feeling and reacted by instinct, which was to say, “I’m supposed to take you to dinner.”

“I’m excusing you,” Green replied. “I’ll tell Daisy if you don’t want to.”

“I can cook,” Red pressed on. At Green’s dubious and confused expression, Red reminded him, “I lived on a mountain on my own for years.”

“You’re insane,” Green concluded.

“I can cook,” Red said again.

They stood there for a while longer before Green threw up his hands.

“Fine! Whatever. I don’t care.”

They stopped by the grocery store on Red’s insistence so that Red could pick up some basic ingredients: chicken thighs, eggs, onions. Green said he had rice, at least, and a rice cooker.

Green’s apartment was a short walk away from the grocery store, as was everything in Viridian City. The complex was apparently where all the young people lived: they passed by two of the residents at Viridian Gym, Salma and Ida, on their way to the stairs. They blatantly stared. Green ignored them.

“Here you go.”

Green opened the door.

The apartment was large and well-lived in. Stacks of paper were on the coffee table, the kitchen table, and in a corner of the couch. There was a TV with a gaming system next to a bookshelf filled with books on the study of Pokemon. There was another set of shelves with framed photos of what looked like Green with his friends and family.

“Kitchen’s over here,” Green said. Pikachu hopped onto the couch and curled up in the crook between the back and the arm. Umbreon and Espeon sat by the glass door separating Green’s living room from his small patio and stared out at nothing in particular.

The kitchen was a very different picture from the rest of the apartment. It was clean from non-use. Green had equipment, but it was all new and hardly, if ever, used. His refrigerator had a carton of miso, alcohol, and a single carrot.

Green found the rice cooker and bag of rice, which was still mostly full. Green had basic essentials in his cupboard: oil, salt, sugar, mirin, soy sauce, bonito flakes, kombu. Green said that he couldn’t remember when he had gotten those or the last time he used them.

Red set the rice to cook while he prepared the chicken and onions and added them to simmering broth. Green watched from the kitchen table, hand on his cheek. It was some time before either of them said anything.

“How did you cook on Mt. Silver?” Green asked, breaking the silence at last.

“Hot plate powered by Pikachu,” Red answered. He beat the eggs and added them to the top of the chicken. When it was all done, with the eggs just barely set, he served Green and himself each a bowl of rice and spooned the chicken and eggs over it.

After setting some aside for Pikachu, Espeon, and Umbreon, Red set a bowl in front of Green and himself. Green looked unhappy as he tried some and announced bitterly, “It’s delicious.”

“Thanks,” Red said, amused as Green took another bite. Red watched with quiet delight as Green finished his food with gusto.

“You really are perfect, aren’t you?” Green said, leaning against the table while watching Red finish washing the dishes.

“Far from it,” Red answered. He heard Green scoff behind him. “You know that better than anyone.”

There was silence while Red cleaned off the sink and turned off the water. He turned around to see Green staring at him, still leaning against the table. Red allowed him to look until Green finally looked away.

“You make it sound like we’re close,” Green said. “But the truth is, the last time we had a real conversation, I blamed you for ruining my life.”

“That’s why we’re close,” Red said, earning a smile out of Green.

“We aren’t, “ Green said softly, his smile turning sad and in turn filling Red with a sense of longing and despair. “But I wish we were.”

“Do you really?” Red asked, unable to help himself from clinging to words that gave him hope, fighting off by instinct the feeling of loss that was starting to descend on him.

Green looked at him in surprise, but Red waited for him to answer. Red had to be an idiot to think that Green, who was adored and respected by all, would still have some need for a former rival who had long been absent from Green’s life. He had to be a fool to think that winning Green’s heart would be like any other battle Red had fought. But he had to hope.

“Why did you come down from Mt. Silver?” Green asked. “Tell me the truth.”

The question took Red by surprise. He thought that the answer was so obvious, and surely Green must have known. Green’s expression gave nothing away. Having been asked for the truth, Red gave it. “You.”

Green’s eyes sharpened to a familiar look of challenge.

“I read all of your articles,” Red continued. “I looked for news about you in the paper. I lost count of how many times I almost went to Viridian City but stopped myself because your life seemed great without me, and I didn’t want to ruin that. I didn’t think you’d want to even see me. Then you came with Gold and the others, and all the reasons I had for staying away from you didn’t matter anymore. You made me want again when, for so long, I told myself that I couldn’t.”

Red gripped the countertop, physically holding himself back from Green, who stayed maddeningly far away and still.

“I made you want?” Green said. “You have no idea. I thought I might never see you again, and I accepted that. Some days, you were all I could think about, even though I was sure that you never gave me a single thought, because that was what I deserved for how I treated you and behaved as a child. And then seeing you again reminded me of what I had lost and everything I wanted but would never have.”

Red came forward at last, and Green allowed him to come close, raising a hand to hover near Red’s cheek.

“We’re not children anymore,” Red said.

“No,” Green agreed. “We’re not. You’ve made that very obvious,” Green murmured, touching Red at last on his cheek. “I was convinced that you got hot just to spite me.”

“I’m hot?” Red asked, covering Green’s hand with his own.

“I’m not saying it again,” Green said.

“Well,” Red said, certainly pleased. “I know you got hot just to spite me.”

Red kissed Green then. Red wasn’t sure how long the kiss lasted, but it wasn’t long enough, so he kissed Green again, and again, and Green pulled him closer and closer.

They broke apart at last, but neither let go of the other. Red savored the feeling of Green, his scent, his sound: everything Red had missed over the years and then desired more strongly than ever since Green had reappeared in his life.

They did not return to Pallet Town that night. Instead, Red found himself curled around Green while sharing Green’s bed, both of them awake and listening to each other breathe.

“I’ll be yours as long as you want me,” Red said to Green.

Red slid his fingers in between Green’s, squeezing slightly and pleased when Green squeezed back, holding him tightly.

“I’ll hold you to that,” Green promised.

Neither of them let go.

—-

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
